Return to the Land of Snow
by happywanderer2
Summary: Naruto tries to work out his feelings for Sakura and gets help from an unlikely place.
1. Chapter 1

Naruto tries to work out his feelings for Sakura and gets help from an unlikely place. Probably should be considered AU and post series. Miri and the bad guys are mine; most of the others belong to Masashi Kishimoto. Rated T for violence, language, and some sexual situations, but there's nothing explicit. Anyways, on to orange, knuckle headed action!

Return to the Land of Snow

One

Their boat was late; it was dusk by the time they sailed into the harbour. Naruto stood beside Sakura on the deck, silently cursing himself. The trip was almost over and he had done nothing. He had been looking forward to it so much; going on a mission with Sakura alone, but he had not been able to bring himself to say anything and now their alone time was over.

He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to think of something to say.

"It's cold."

"Well, yeah. It's the Land of _Snow_, Naruto."

You're an idiot, Naruto thought, if you cannot say something intelligent then don't say anything.

"Yeah, but I thought Koyuki-chan had that machine…"

"They can only use it for a few months at a time and it's not working properly anymore." Sakura pulled her jacket collar closer around her neck. "So now it's cold."

She tilted her head back and took a deep breath. Naruto watched her profile and his heart gave a funny little hitch. She looked lovely like that, the cold put colour in her cheeks that went with her hair. He sidled closer, thinking that he might put his arm around her.

"Who do you think the Sand will send?" she asked.

"I don't know, Baki maybe. It would be cool if it was Gaara, but he's not supposed to leave the village." Naruto forgot about what he was doing. "When _I_ become Hokage, _I'm_ going to travel all over the place!"

"Don't be silly Naruto. _If_ that ever happens you'll have to stay put, just like Tsunade-sama does." Sakura snickered. "Maybe you should concentrate on becoming a jounin first."

"Hey! I keep telling you, it's not my fault. Besides I'm not the only one…there's Lee, Tenten, Hinata, and Kiba. They're still chunin too."

"And so is Konohamaru."

"Sakura!" Naruto knew he was being teased, but he could not help himself. "I'm more than strong enough! I just don't have enough missions yet. You guys all did missions while I was away with Ero-sennin and I couldn't do missions while we were fighting the Akatsuki."

"No you couldn't," Sakura agreed, her face getting serious.

Naruto gave himself a mental slap to the head, he did not want to remind her of those months leading up to the final battle with the Akatsuki and Sasuke. They had been hard on her and everyone else who had been involved. They had lost old friends and some new ones too. He rubbed the back of his head some more, racking his brain for a way to change the subject. He wanted to just blurt it out, but he did not want to sound like his normal, idiot self. And what if Sakura did not feel the same way?

"Uh, Sakura…" he started.

At that very moment one of the boats moored two docks over exploded, sending flaming pieces of wood and metal flying everywhere.


	2. Chapter 2

Two

The cold winter air made the clatter of metal and wood hitting the ground and the water sound crisp and very close. Voices carried well too, Naruto could hear people yelling in panic and others yelling orders.

"What the…?"

"Look," Sakura said at the same time, pointing at the shore.

The light of the burning vessel illuminated about two dozen figures on the shore. It looked like they were fighting.

"C'mon, let's go." Naruto started to run to the bow of the boat.

Sakura leaned over the side. "We haven't docked yet."

Naruto did not hear her, he had already launched himself into the air, crossing the gap between boat and dock. The force of his landing made him skid along the dock and he almost went over the other side into the frigid water. He wind milled his arms, trying to regain his balance. Someone grabbed the back of his jacket and yanked him upright.

"Be careful, it's slippery and the water is really cold. It could probably kill even you in less than five minutes." Sakura pointed to her feet. "Use chakra to give yourself traction silly."

"Oh yeah, good idea, Sakura. C'mon let's go help out."

"Let's try to figure out what's going on first before we go charging in."

Sakura squinted ahead into the dusk; the light from the fire was making a mess of her night vision. She tried to look for insignia or uniforms, or anything that would tell her who was fighting and whether or not they should even interfere. Their mission was to provide information and security during negotiations with Kazahana Koyuki. The young ruler was hoping to improve trade and gain help in improving the technology that could bring the summer to the Land of Snow. This fight might not even have anything to do with that, and if that was the case, it might be smarter to not get involved.

They moved closer. Sakura made a frustrated noise, she could not even make out any features on the man nearest to her.

"Hey, Sakura look." Naruto tugged at her sleeve and pointed.

Sakura followed the line of his finger. The exploded boat was still burning and another one had caught on fire. The flames highlighted a familiar profile on another dock. Sakura would know it anywhere; tall and broad and topped with a bunraku cowl.

"And there they go." Naruto pointed again.

Two shapes had launched into the air, Sakura could just make out Kuroari's horns as the puppet wheeled around and dove into a group of fighting men.

"Why would they send him? These are negotiations, he sucks at that sort of thing."

"Naruto!" Sakura scolded.

She had to agree though, Kankuro was not known for his diplomatic skills.

"Who knows. C'mon Naruto, let's help him."

"Right on! Say, if he's here does that mean…whoah!"

The rest was lost as Naruto ducked out of the way of a flying torso. It sailed over his head and crashed to the ground, sliding in the snow.

"That's weird…" Sakura started.

There was no blood, but then she realized what it was. It was one of Kankuro's drone puppets. They were man shaped with featureless faces covered in purple masks. Most looked like the pattern Kankuro wore, others had the patterns he had worn when he was younger, and a few were painted in complex and bizarre designs. Kankuro called his faceless troops Dragon's Teeth, after an army in a foreign legend. When he was not using them, each puppet would fold into a compact ball, not much bigger than an adult molar. That was what she had seen before and it was why she had not been able to make out any features on the figures she had seen fighting.

Sakura took another look at the fight. About a dozen puppets and a handful of men who looked like sailors were fighting shinobi. More men were clustered at the end of the dock where the explosion had occurred. Sakura and Naruto ran over.

"What happened?" she asked a sailor who looked like he might be a boat captain or at least a senior crew member.

"We were just getting ready to leave. Then the boat next to ours just blew up. Please excuse me, I have to make sure everyone is off my boat, in case…" He turned away as another man ran up. "Well?"

The second man was wheezing, it sounded like he had some smoke in his lungs to Sakura. He shook his head.

"The boy and the old man, they're still below decks. The woman went after them, but…" He made a gesture to indicate that he thought it was hopeless.

"Still on board!" Naruto turned and ran towards the boat.

The fire had spread in the short time they had been standing there. Naruto was able to make out a hatch that was not yet in flames, it might be a way in. He was getting ready to leap towards it when the hatch burst off its hinges. It flew through the air and into the water. Three figures emerged onto the deck, one dragging was two others, an old man and a young boy.

"Miri!" Naruto yelled above the noise of the fight and the fire.

The woman looked in his direction, and then, with a deft motion, scooped the boy up and hurled him into the air at Naruto. He barely had time to brace himself before the child landed in his arms. He staggered back a few steps and then remembered Sakura's advice about using chakra for traction.

He looked down at the boy. "You okay kid?"

The boy nodded, wide eyed. "Oji-chan? Miri-chan?"

"Right here Kenji," said a low voice nearby.

Miri lowered the old man to the ground. "Watch over him would you, Kenji? He sucked in more smoke than was wise." She looked up at Naruto. "Uzumaki, long time no see. You guys are a little late."

"Well, uh…"

Miri stood up, smacking at her jacket where it was smoking and then checking at her back to make sure her sword was safe. To look at her face you might not know that she had just pulled two people off a burning boat and was standing in the middle of an ambush.

But then, Naruto thought, she lives with Kankuro. Explosions are probably a welcome change to that guy's temper.

"I realize that no man controls the wind or the tides so I understand how it might happen. On the other hand," she jerked her thumb in Kankuro's direction, "_some_ of you shinobi are not so tolerant."

"Miri, are you all right?" Sakura had joined them.

"Very well thank-you for asking. Would you be able to help these two?"

"Of course, we should try to find some place a little more sheltered." Sakura looked around. "That looks like the harbour master's house over there, it will do."

"Good, you help them while we help Kankuro out," Naruto said.

"I think the fight's mostly over, Naruto," Sakura said. "The attackers are on the run."

Miri looked around. "You are right. That is odd, they were holding their own."

"Hah! They saw the great Uzumaki and got scared."

Sakura made a derisive noise.

"Well," Miri said, "that orange jacket is disorienting. Maybe they…"

"LESS GOSSIPING, MORE ASS KICKING!" Kankuro roared from the end of the dock.

"Let's get the wounded to safety first. Naruto you cover us," Sakura ordered.

Naruto started to protest, he wanted to get into the fight, but then remembered that Sakura was in charge. She was a jounin and he was not.

They ushered the old man and Kenji up the slope that led from the docks to a house that also served as harbour station. Sakura set up inside while Naruto and Miri went back out to find more wounded.

Sakura wondered again who had attacked and why, but then pushed those thoughts aside.

First things first, she thought, deal with injuries and then afterwards you can figure out what happened.

It did not take long to see to the old man and the boy and the two or three others inside. Sakura stepped outside to see what was happening. The fight was winding down; Kankuro had recalled most of his puppets. Karasu and Kuroari were circling around, but it looked like they had switched from battle to reconnaissance mode. Naruto clones were running around everywhere, looking for someone to fight.

Sakura shook her head, but she had to laugh at the sight.

"Orange, orange everywhere but…hmm. Why is he not wearing the black? What rhymes with orange, Sakura? Does anything?"

Miri was back, carrying an injured sailor and leading another man who was cradling his arm. Sakura laughed and took the man from her.

Before she could reply to Miri's question, a roar split the night air. In the harbor, a pale dragon reared out of the water, bellowing a challenge.


	3. Chapter 3

Three

The dragon rose out of the water, its pale body glimmered silver-green in the cold night air.

"What the hell is that?!" Miri exclaimed.

"It's a water dragon…ice dragon actually," Sakura said. She concentrated, trying to get a lock on whoever was controlling it. A creature of that size had to have some high level jutsu behind it. After a few moments she shook her head. "I can't pinpoint the source of the jutsu."

"You are certain it is not real?"

"Yes."

"And since you cannot find the source, we will have to fight it directly. Correct?"

Sakura nodded.

"Lovely." Miri grimaced, turned, and hurried towards the dock. Naruto joined her moments later.

"Get off the dock!" she yelled at Kankuro. "Let us…"

"Screw that!" He waved them away. "I've got it covered. Just stand there and watch the light show."

"Fine, but maybe…hey!" Miri was interrupted as Karasu zoomed by low enough to smack the back of her head before flying out to confront the dragon.

Miri rubbed her head. "Ass," she muttered. "Would the show look any different if you were here, where it is safer?" She watched the puppets for a few moments. "Ah, he has been itching to try _that_."

"Try what?" Naruto asked.

"A new attack."

"Cool. What's it called?"

"Not sure, probably something long and weird. Keep your eyes on their lower arms, that is where the pulse originates. Not sure how he plans to keep that thing occupied while the charge builds."

"How about that?" Naruto pointed.

A large bird had appeared; swooping and diving at the dragon's head, trying to peck its eyes out. While the dragon swatted at it, Karasu and Kuroari started to fly in a circle around it. In a few moments they were going so fast that it was hard to see them. Naruto became aware of a low humming sound.

"What's he going to do?" Naruto asked again.

Kankuro was always dreaming up the weirdest attacks; weird but formidable. And they were always loud and flashy, which was something Naruto could relate to.

"If I tell you, it will ruin the dramatic effect."

"What's that horrible noise?" Sakura had joined them.

There was a crack and a high pitched whine. Pale blue light began to play around the lower arms of the two puppets. Everyone could feel the hair on their arms start to prickle.

Sakura's eyes got wide. "It's an electro-static charge."

"A lectro-stabbin what now?"

Sakura made an exasperated sound. "Electro-static silly. Think electricity, but combined with Kankuro's chakra. He's both an earth and lightening user, but this looks like some kind of lightning attack, right?" Sakura frowned. "Should he be out on that dock? And how is he grounding himself?"

"His boots have thick soles and his own chakra helps. And I agree, standing front and center like that is not prudent." Miri made a gesture of despair. "Unfortunately, _he_ does not do prudent."

A loud boom split the night air and the smell of ozone overpowered the salty sea smell. Naruto felt the hair on the back of his neck rise up. Blue light arched towards the dragon, striking its chest. Long cracks appeared down the dragon's neck, lengthening with a sound like breaking bone.

"Hey, if that explodes…" Sakura started.

"Kankuro! Get off the dock!" Miri yelled at the same moment.

A second blast snaked through the air and the dragon exploded. Chunks of ice flew through the air and crashed into the shore and rained down on everyone.

Naruto put his hands up to shield his head and dodged a boulder sized piece of ice. "Excellent technique!"

He started to grin, but stopped when he saw the horrified looks on Sakura's and Miri's faces.

"What…?"

There was another explosion, this time from under the water. Just like an iceberg, most of the dragon's mass had been below the water. Its body and tail filled much of the harbour; twisted and curled under and around the docks. When they exploded, a mass of ice and water shot upwards, smashing through the docks and boats. Naruto lost sight of Kankuro among the ice, water, and pieces of wood. When everything had rained back down and they could see again the puppeteer and most of the dock were gone.

Sakura pressed her hands to her mouth and gasped.

"There!" Miri pointed.

It was Karasu and Kuroari. The puppets were flying in a tight circle over the water, but their spirals were getting smaller and smaller and they were losing height. Then they crashed into the water.

"Crap!" Naruto ran out to the end of the shattered dock, trying to think of what to do. Kankuro was pretty far out, and there was no way they could get a boat out in time.

Someone nudged his shoulder. It was Miri. When he looked at her, she pushed a piece of rope into his hand. It was the end of a long coil and the other end was tied around her waist. She had discarded her jacket, mail shirt, and sword. She had her eyes fixed on the spot where the puppets had disappeared into the water.

"Sakura…"

"I'll be ready. Be quick Miri, you'll have four or five minutes. If you don't find…" Sakura trailed off, not wanting to even think about it.

"Will not happen. When I tug Naruto, you pull us in."

"Right."

Miri paused and Sakura could sense her preparing for what she was going to do. After a few moments there was a massive pulse of energy and Sakura could see a yellow glow start in the other woman's eyes.

"Be ready," she said and dove into the water.

"I'll get blankets," Sakura said and hurried off.

Naruto nodded and tightened his grip on the rope so he would feel any little twitch or tug.

"That's insane," a voice said behind him; one of the sailors. "The water's freezing. No one can survive for long in there. And she'll never find him."

"Oh, yes she will," Naruto asserted. "She said she would. So she will. Believe it!"


	4. Chapter 4

Four

_Naruto slid the door open and stepped outside, moving quietly so he would not wake anyone. He stretched, yawning. It was early, just past dawn. Everyone else would probably need some more sleep, the mission had been a tough one. Naruto was feeling pretty good himself, a few hours of sleep and his wounds were gone. He had a little lingering stiffness, but it was nothing that some healing chakra and a bowl of pork ramen would not fix._

_ A clicking sound caught his attention, he was not the first one up after all. Kankuro was sitting on the porch that surrounded the inn, tinkering with one of his puppets. He had his back to Naruto, showing him the wide swathe of bandages around his ribs and some impressive bruises on his shoulders and arms._

_ He looked around and saw Naruto._

_ "Hey Kankuro. Nice morning huh?"_

_ Kankuro grunted and turned back to his puppet, shoulders hunched up in what had to be an uncomfortable posture. Naruto could see that he was scowling; not unusual for Kankuro, but the expression looked a little odd._

_ Naruto rubbed the back of his neck, not quite sure what to do. He looked around. "Uh Kankuro, is Miri up yet?"_

_ Kankuro sat up straight, his whole body going taut and his hands stopped moving. He lurched to his feet, pushing the puppet off his lap and letting it fall to the ground. He cursed and threw the tool he was using. _

_ Kankuro whirled around. "This is your damn fault!"_

_ "I, uh, what?"_

_ "You! The way you change people. Like Gaara…like me. Some days I wish you hadn't!" He saw the puzzled look on Naruto's face and swore. "Once Gaara started caring, it meant I could too. But the thing no one tells you is that when you care for someone, it really hurts when they leave you."_

_ Naruto scratched his head, completely at a loss._

_ "You asshole!" Kankuro snarled. "She's gone!"_

_ He looked down at his puppet and for a moment Naruto thought that he might kick it._

_ "You mean Miri? When? Why? Why didn't you stop her?"_

_ "Who the hell else? She left about and hour ago and like I could stop her. And why? Why do you think? She's not safe here, not while the Akatsuki exist."_

_ "That's not true, you can protect her."_

_ "Bullshit. I failed at protecting Gaara didn't I?"_

_ "But that's…you're tons stronger now."_

_Kankuro shook his head. "I've barely managed to keep my own ass intact lately, let alone hers. She's not as strong as you, you know it, and she knows it. The best thing, the most_ prudent_ thing," his nose wrinkled in distaste as he said the word, "is for her to get as far away from here as possible."_

"_But that's… I can't believe you just let her go Kankuro. I mean don't you…uh."_

"_I didn't _just _let her do anything. But this is the best way, the most logical way." There was a bitter and disgusted tone in his voice. "She'll go to her home…to her own people. Maybe they can figure out something to help defeat the Akatsuki. She'll be safer there and it allows us to focus all our efforts on protecting you and Kirabi."_

"_I don't need…"_

"_That's bullshit."_

_Naruto opened his mouth to argue further, but then something occurred to him. "But if they figure something out, that means she'll be back, right?"_

"_That's what she said. She said she'd find me again, but there's no way."_

"_If that's what she said, then that's what she'll do."_

"_Idiot. There's no damn way."_

"_I don't get it. You want her to come back right? And she said she would. So…?"_

"_You're so naïve. She won't be back. She just said that to make it easier for me to let her go."_

"_No! You're wrong!" Naruto pointed at Kankuro. "You're the idiot for not believing her! If she said she'd find you, then she will."_

-0000-

"Hey, look." Someone nudged Naruto's arm.

Naruto looked at the rope in his hands, it was twitching.

"Alright!" He began to pull. "Told ya!"

He pulled as fast as he could, trying to ignore the icy chills the damp rope sent up his arms. There was little resistance on the rope at first, but then Naruto found that he was pulling a heavy weight. He peered over the dock and could see dark shapes emerge from the water.

"Sakura," he called over his shoulder.

"I'm ready." She hurried to his side. "Pull harder!"

"I'm trying."

Sakura peered over the side and then jumped back. "Watch out!"

Kuroari flew over the side of the dock, just missing Naruto. A hand grasped the edge of the dock, steaming in the cold air. Sakura took another peek over, Miri had one arm wrapped around Kankuro who was holding Karasu. Sakura figured that she must have tossed Kuroari up to free up her arm so she could help Naruto pull them up.

"Naruto, careful. Lift them out and then pull," Sakura said. She reached over the side a grabbed the back of Miri's shirt. She could feel the heat emanating from the other woman's body; she hoped that it had been enough to keep Kankuro alive.

"Trying. Kinda heavy."

They combined efforts for one massive tug and flipped the awkward mass of puppets, shinobi, and woman onto the dock. Wood creaked under them.

"We'd better get off of this dock before it collapses," Sakura said. "You take her, I've got Kankuro."

Sakura fumbled with the rope, trying to get it loose. Miri had looped it around Kankuro and herself and had one arm wrapped tight around the puppeteer.

"Miri, let go, you're safe," Naruto said, trying to pull her away.

Miri grunted and loosened her grip. "Kuroari. Karasu. Do not forget them."

Naruto snorted, Miri was just as protective of Kankuro's puppets as he was. He helped Miri off the dock and then knelt beside her.

"Here, wrap this around her," Sakura ordered, tossing a blanket at him. She bent over the puppeteer, trying to get him to let go of his puppet. Kankuro was unconscious, his face blue tinged under his war paint. Sakura could not believe that it was still on his face. She pushed Karasu aside and put her hands on his chest, feeling for a heart beat. Sakura rolled Kankuro onto his side and put her hands on his back. She applied chakra, pushing it through his lungs. Kankuro coughed, heaving up water and gasping in air.

"Yes! That's it. Breathe." She held him in place, making sure that the water drained away. Kankuro's shoulders and chest heaved again, pushing out the last of the water. Sakura pushed him into a recovery position and checked his pulse.

"How is she, Naruto?"

"Fine I guess. How's Kankuro?"

"I think he'll be okay. You take her up to the house." Sakura looked at the men who had gathered around, watching. "Someone go and get a stretcher, so we can take him up too," she ordered.

Naruto stood, helping Miri to her feet, the last of the heat emanating from her body had disappeared and she was starting to shiver. "And don't forget the puppets," he added. "Or Kankuro will get pissed. And you don't want to see that."


	5. Chapter 5

Five

Naruto stood on the small porch in front of the harbour master's house, surveying the damage from the previous night. Two of the four docks that made up the small port were useless, while the third looked like it might be able to support light traffic. Three cargo ships were moored farther out and men were coming and going in small boats; it was business as usual despite the chaos of the previous evening.

He looked up to the train station that overlooked the harbour. He could hear Sakura's voice. Naruto squinted up at the station and made a face. She was with that Takahashi guy. He was in charge of the small squad of men that Koyuki had sent to escort the Sand and Leaf shinobi to her capital. They had arrived early in the morning. Naruto knew it was more of a symbolic gesture than anything, but it still bothered him. They were shinobi, they did not need protection. He could take care of himself and Sakura too; he did not need any soldier in a shiny uniform.

They walked down the hill to the house, Sakura waved as they got closer. "Naruto, there you are. Takahashi-san was showing me the train we're going to take. It's very nice. Thank-you very much Takahashi-san."

Takahashi smiled, his teeth were very white and even, Naruto noticed. "Anything for friends of Koyuki-sama, especially if you can help her. She works so very hard for all of us, so we have to help in any way we can."

Naruto had to repress a snort, the guy sounded like he was straight out of some lame TV show. He hoped, for Koyuki's sake, that he was better than he sounded. Sakura shot him a dirty look; she had recognized the expression on his face.

"Well, I should get back. We have a few things left to do before we are ready to go. Will Kankuro-san be ready to travel by then?"

"Yes. He will be fine. Have you made any progress on the investigation into the attack? He's sure to ask about it when he gets up."

"Not much I'm afraid. The ice and water washed most of the evidence away and all the attackers escaped. We'll keep working on it and I will have a report ready for him."

"He'll appreciate that. Thank-you Takahashi-san."

"Just doing my job. We'll talk again later." He bowed and headed off.

Naruto wrinkled his nose, he was not sure if he liked the guy.

Sakura smacked him. "Stop making that face. What's your problem?"

"Ouch! Hey! It's that guy. He's just so… He looks more like an actor in one of Koyuki-chan's movies than a soldier. Do you really think he's able to protect her?"

"Hmm, he is handsome. I'm sure she was thinking of that when she chose him. But as far as I could see, he's competent enough. The uniform is very pretty, but did you notice his sword, Naruto. The scabbard is old and scratched, it's not for show. He carries himself like an expert swordsman too."

"I guess." Naruto realized something. "Hey! You checked him out pretty thoroughly. What's that about?"

"I was wondering the same as you." He eyes narrowed in suspicion. "What did you think I was doing? Oh!" She hit him again. "You idiot! Who do you think I am, Ino-pig?"

"No, no!" Naruto threw his hands up to stop her from hitting him again. He tried to think of something to change the subject. "Will Kankuro really be ready to travel so soon?"

"Yes, he'll be fine. I'm going to look in on them now."

"Can I come?"

"No! You'll probably just do something stupid and wake him up. Go and see if they can use some help with the clean up."

"Okay. Good idea. I'll see you later." He gave her a thumbs up and bounded off.

Sakura watched him go, as always amazed by his energy. She went inside to the room where Kankuro and Miri were recuperating. She opened the door a little and peeked inside. Kankuro was sprawled on his back, arms stretched across the width of the bed. The blankets Sakura had piled on him were pushed down to his waist, leaving his muscular, scarred chest bare. He was snoring. That was a good sign. People who were really sick did not have normal sleep patterns and therefore did not snore.

The pile of blankets next to Kankuro shifted and a pair of eyes peered out at Sakura. Miri was curled into a ball, tucked into the space under one of Kankuro's arms. A long arm snaked out from under the blankets and Miri's fingers settled on Kankuro's wrist, taking a pulse. After a few moments the arm withdrew back under the blanket. The blanket pile shifted again and the eyes disappeared.

Sakura nodded to herself, satisfied. Her patient was doing fine and was well monitored. She had a special spot in her heart for Kankuro; he had been her first real test as a medic. By finding an antidote for Sasori's poison and saving his life, she had finally proven to herself that she was a real shinobi and a useful member of her team. Seeing the Sand shinobi wake up had been satisfying, but seeing the look of awe on Naruto's face had been the real reward. She had stayed in contact with Kankuro, making sure that had a full recovery. She had been worried to hear about his struggles after losing his puppets, relieved when Ebizo finally took him on as a student, and happy to see him become so much stronger.

Sakura wandered back into the kitchen. She needed to make a list of supplies so she could replenish her medical kit and she wanted to make sure there was some hot food and tea available for when Kankuro and Miri woke up. She also wanted to send a message to the Hokage to let her know what had happened. Sakura was not sure if the previous night's events had anything to do with their mission, but the odds were good; they always were when Naruto was involved. Sakura had gotten used to it over the years, but just once she wished she could actually sum up a mission as 'routine'.

"Never going to happen," she muttered. "So just deal with it."

-0000-

Naruto squirmed in his seat, trying to hide that fact that he was getting restless and annoyed. Restless because they had been going over Takahashi's notes on his investigation of the attack for what felt like forever, and annoyed because the guy would not give them a few moments alone. Ever since they had boarded the train it felt like he had been somewhere nearby, hovering, with that perfect smile of his.

He sighed and looked out the window at the snowy landscape. It was boring; everything looked the same under snow. He considered going to find Kankuro, watching him tinker with his puppets (and listening to him swear) had to be more interesting than this.

Sakura shifted some of the papers on the table. "Have you had a chance to go over the notes Kankuro gave you?"

"I've had a look. I will integrate them into the final report. I'll have that done by the time we get to the capital." He tapped a finger on the notes. Naruto recognized Kankuro's hand writing: neat, elegant, and the complete opposite of what he had expected from the surly puppeteer. Naruto could also see notes that Miri had added in her precise handwriting in the margins.

"The woman made some odd annotations," Takahashi continued. "I'm not sure if I should add them."

"It won't hurt; you never know what might be helpful. How are they odd?" Sakura asked.

"They look like just a bunch of random observations. It will be hard to summarize them. Like here," he pointed. "Kankuro-san estimated the dimensions of the ice dragon and given technical details of how it might have been made and she's added 'big hollow midsection'. I'm not sure what that even means."

Naruto frowned. "That's obvious. It was hollow inside."

"Yes, but what does it mean? It doesn't seem at all relevant." Takahashi looked at Sakura.

"That's something we'll just have to figure out. Just try your best with their notes, Takahashi-san. I'm sure you'll do fine. If there's anything that's not clear I'm sure either Kankuro or Miri will be happy to explain what they meant."

"Will Kankuro-san be joining us for dinner?"

"I'm not sure. He's doing repairs on his puppets. He said that he didn't know how long it will take. I'll let you know when he is finished."

What Kankuro had actually said was: "It takes however damn long it takes. And keep that Takahashi idiot out of my hair while I'm working." He had snorted, slammed the door of his cabin, and Naruto had not seen him since.

"Very good." Takahashi began to gather up his notes. "I'm going to send a message ahead to make sure that everything is ready for your arrival."

"Okay. Thank-you for all your hard work," Sakura said.

"Oh, no it is nothing."

Takahashi stood, nodded politely, and headed off.

"Stop making that face, Naruto," Sakura said in a low voice. Naruto could hear knuckles cracking as she made a fist.

"But he's…"

"Enough. If you're that bored, go and see if Kankuro wants any help."

"You know he won't let me touch his puppets. Remember what happened…"

Sakura's irritated look vanished, replaced by a big grin. She giggled. "That's right, I'd almost forgotten. You got lacquer everywhere. Kankuro was so mad. His face went the same color as his make up." She giggled again. "It took forever for your hair to grow back, you were all patchy. What were you trying to do again?"

Naruto stuck his lip out. "I was just trying to make a toy for Kurenai-sensei's kid. Like the little toys Kankuro uses."

Sakura's eyes got big. "Oh, Naruto don't ever let Kankuro hear you call them toys. Those are miniatures of his puppets, instead of the scrolls."

"I know, I know, but they look like toys. Don't they?"

"Well." Sakura had to admit that they did. "Ugly toys maybe."

"Hah! Don't let him hear _you_ say that. He thinks they're all beautiful. Remember what he did to Sai for saying that they were deficient in certain spots?"

Sakura giggled and then clapped her hands over her mouth to stifle the sound. Sai was her team mate; she should not be finding amusement in it. Naruto grinned at her, this was much better, just him and Sakura talking and laughing. He could feel the happy warmth he got whenever she giggled like that start in his belly.

"Yeah, he still gets a twitchy look on his face if you say Kankuro's name." Naruto laughed. "Or even the word puppet."

He laughed again and leaned back in his seat, tucking his hands behind his head and relishing the memory.

"You shouldn't look so happy about it Naruto. Sai is our team mate," Sakura said, but she was still smiling.

"I guess."

Sakura chuckled and looked down at the copies of the notes Takahashi had left. She began to flip through them, reorganizing them and sometimes stopping to read a section. Naruto looked out the window again, but kept one eye on Sakura, watching her as she read. He liked the way her forehead would wrinkle up when she was concentrating or how her nose wrinkled when she laughed. He wanted to tell her that and a whole bunch of other things too, but he just did not know where to start. She would probably get mad at him if he said anything about her forehead; she was more than a little sensitive about it after years of teasing by Ino.

But _I_ think it is beautiful, just like the rest of her, Naruto thought, especially when it wrinkles up like that.

There were so many little things he noticed now that he thought were just amazing that he could not remember noticing before.

She's always been smart and pretty, he thought, but now she seems so…amazing. When did that happen?

"Sakura…"

"Hmm, what?" she looked up from her reading.

"This is, uh, nice, huh?"

"What?"

"This…the mission…it's nice to be on it. With you."

Sakura wrinkled her nose at him, the look on her face indicating the he had said something silly.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I…it's just…well…like normal. Everything's getting back to normal isn't it?" Naruto improvised, abandoning what he really wanted to say.

"Yes, I suppose it is."

"Well, that's nice then." Naruto shrugged and looked out the window again.

Idiot, he thought. You are an idiot. How does anyone do this? How do you know when it's right? Just how?


	6. Chapter 6

Six

Miri put her rag down and wiggled her fingers. She had been oiling the leather belt that Kankuro used to carry his weapons. When Kankuro had replaced his scrolls with miniatures it had increased the number of puppets he could carry, but it had also increased the amount of maintenance they required. Each puppet and its miniature had to be kept in perfect working order, along with their weapons, poisons, and explosives. Even the belt he used had to be inspected regularly to make sure each pouch had no holes and each fastener was secure and could be opened with the flip of a finger.

And dunking the whole thing in sea water was definitely not the best thing for all that metal and wood and leather, she thought.

She raised an eyebrow at the grumbled string of curses that came from nearby.

Not the best thing for their owner's disposition either.

She ran her hands over the belt one last time and then scooted over to the end of the bed so she could set it on the floor. Karasu's and Shanshouo's miniatures were sitting there, waiting to go into their pouches. Kankuro was working on the full-sized Kuroari. Other puppets, parts, weapons, and tools were spread out around the small room, taking up most of the floor and all other flat surfaces.

Miri leaned over and patted Shanshouo on the head with one oily finger. At full size the puppets were instruments of death and destruction, but in their reduced state, Miri thought they were sort of cute, especially Shanshouo. She grinned and scratched the puppet under his chin.

Shanshouo lifted his head and snapped at her fingers, blunt teeth pinching hard enough to make her yelp. Miri shook the injured digits and wrinkled her nose at Kankuro's broad back. He remained hunched over his repairs. She shook her head and slid off the bed, picking her way across the room to the small window. She pressed her forehead against it and watched the snowy landscape flow by. It reminded her of her home. Clear, crisp nights, bright sun on snow, and that sleepy forest smell. She would stay in Suna with Kankuro for as long as he wanted her there, but she did miss the landscape of her home. And seasons, she really missed having four seasons.

She pulled back from the window. "I hope it is like this where we are going. The capital is not all that big, right? There will be some time to explore?"

Kankuro grunted and kept on tinkering.

"I hope there are no more delays. It is hard to be cooped up in this machine. I like the motion, but that coal smell…" She made a face.

Kankuro snapped the doors on Kuroari's torso shut and began to polish his horns.

"I wonder if it is possible to go outside. An observation deck maybe…the fresh air would do use both good. This room is getting musty."

Kankuro tossed the cloth he was using on the floor and began to hunt around for a clean one. He found one, slid Kuroari aside, pulled the cowled puppet Benimaru towards him, and began to clean the flame thrower in the puppet's arm. A sudden blast of cold air on his neck made him look up.

"Hey! What the hell?"

Miri had opened the window of their compartment. The window was small, but she had somehow managed to stick her head out and was letting the wind blast away at her face and hair.

"Miri!"

She pulled her head in. "What?"

Kankuro scowled at her, not fooled by the innocent tone of her voice. "Close the damn window."

"Alright, but the snow smells great and this place needed some air." She grinned at him, cheeks reddened by the cold and hair blow wild by the wind.

"Snow doesn't have a smell."

"Sure does. All the places the water has been." She ran one hand through her hair. "I am going to see if there is a place to go outside." She reached across to the hook for her jacket, but was stopped by Kankuro's hand on her arm.

"There's still stuff to do here."

Miri looked around. "I think you are mostly done. The place does need to be cleaned up though."

Kankuro shrugged. "It's not that bad. C'mere."

He sat on the edge of the bed, pulling her along with him. He put his hands on her hips, running his thumbs along the waistband of her pants.

"Please do not wipe your dirty fingers on my trousers."

Kankuro moved his hands up so they were on her shirt. "Better?"

Miri rolled her eyes.

"Hey, I ran out of clean rags. Everything had to be oiled, sea water is hell on puppet joints."

"Not so good for the puppeteer either."

Kankuro snorted. "Yeah, yeah, I get it. Next time I'll get to dry land first."

"A splendid idea. Desert rats like yourself should leave the swimming to the experts."

There was no point in telling him how frightening it had been; he refused to listen to her worries. Kankuro was one of the most impulsive and fearless people she knew and sometimes he scared the hell out of her. Watching his puppets drop into the water had been like a knife to her stomach. Pulling his cold, limp body to shore had been a thousand times worse.

"Fortunately for you, I have an affinity for water," she added.

"An affinity?" Kankuro's eyes flicked up to hers and then down to her stomach to where her seal was, hidden under her shirt. "Yeah, I suppose you could call it that."

"I suppose." Miri slipped a finger under his chin and lifted it. "If you are going to use it again, it will need a name."

"What?"

"That attack. It will need a name."

Kankuro's face brightened. "Yeah, it will. Pretty damn impressive, eh?"

"The lights _were_ pretty the way they danced across the sky. Like the northern lights. You should work that into the name."

"Pretty! Like hell! Stop that." He gave her a shake.

"Fine. It was impressive, as always. Now, if you are finished wiping your hands…"

A grin appeared on Kankuro's face. He slipped his hands under her shirt. "Not quite."

"Hey! Your hands are cold."

"And whose fault is that, huh?" The grin got broader and more than a little evil. "So you'll just have to make up for it by helping to warm them up."

-0000-

"Whoa, what would Kiba think of that, Sakura?" Naruto whispered.

"What would Akamaru think?" she whispered back. "Look at the size of that animal. And it's so beautiful."

The animal in question stretched and yawned, digging her claws into the wooden platform. Sleek muscle rippled under her striped coat. She and her mistress were escorting one of the other people attending the meeting. They were all waiting for luggage to be unloaded before heading into town.

"I never knew tigers came in that colour," Naruto said.

The tiger was white with bold purple-black stripes and dark blue eyes. She was the largest cat Naruto had ever seen; she was probably even bigger than Akamaru.

"They do in the Land of Snow, I guess. I never knew that there were cat-nins," Sakura said.

"Why not, it makes sense."

"Hmm, maybe, it's just that cats are so…"

The tiger made a loud noise, something between a grunt and a bark. She started to pace around the platform. She looked and sounded upset to Sakura.

"What's wrong with her, Miyako?"

"She's a little uneasy, Nejibana-san," the kunoichi answered the man waiting with her. "There are several scents nearby that she finds…disquieting."

Nejibana's eyebrows rose. "Should we be worried? Is there danger?"

"I don't think so. It's the Leaf shinobi." She nodded in Naruto's direction. "And the scent on some of the luggage." Miyako pointed. "The Sand shinobi's. It also disturbs her."

Kankuro shrugged. "Wouldn't worry about it. It's probably Miri's. She's off scouting around at the moment."

Nejibana nodded. "Ah, yes your…"

"Body guard," Kankuro finished for him, grinning. "She smells how she smells. Can't do much about it. Can't help you with Uzumaki either. He always smells a little weird."

"Hey!" Naruto protested.

Sakura rolled her eyes and thought about smacking the Sand shinobi, but she knew it would not help. Kankuro had changed in a lot ways since she had first met him: the stocky kid with one puppet and a heavily painted face had mastered dozens of puppets and now wore a simpler, but still fierce, design on his face. When Sakura had first met Kankuro, he had hated his brother, now he was the closest confidant of the Kazekage and had almost died trying to protect Gaara. However, some things had not changed; like his cocky attitude, his rough manners, and those big grins.

"Kankuro!" she scolded, keeping her voice low. "Don't say it like _that_."

"What? I don't know what you're talking about," he said, trying to look innocent (and failing). "On this mission that's what she is."

There was some truth to it. During the train ride, Kankuro had explained the reason for his presence at the meeting. As part of her efforts to keep the Land of Snow a self-sufficient country, Koyuki had called on experts from other lands to help repair the machine that could bring spring and summer to the land. The artificial spring and summer seasons were short, but they were still enough to allow some food to grow and to give people access to other resources on the land. If her people were going to remain independent they needed to continue using the machine. So when it had started to fail and none of her engineers had been able to fix it, she had reached out to experts in other lands for help. One of the people she had asked was Ebizo. Sakura had been surprised to learn that the old man was much more than a former council member and puppet maker. He was also an engineer who had been involved in designing some of the buildings and aqua ducts for Suna. After the destruction of Konoha, he had helped with some of the reconstruction. Sakura did not know much about such things, but everyone who did had hailed his designs as works of genius.

Ebizo had declined the invitation, saying that the trip and the climate would not agree with his aging bones, but had sent Kankuro in his place. Ebizo had been teaching him more than just puppet making, it seemed.

Takahashi frowned. "What is she looking for? How can she perform her function as a body guard if you are out of her sight?"

Kankuro shrugged. "She's not looking for anything. She's scouting, that means looking, not searching. She'll see what she sees and then find us."

Naruto laughed. "That sounds like something she'd say, right down to her funny accent. You're starting to sound like her Kankuro."

"Screw you. That _is_ what she said." Kankuro paused. "How 'bout this, Takahashi, rub some catnip on Uzumaki, toss him to that big kitty over there, and we'll see how fast she gets back when he starts to squeal."

"Hey!"

"Well, you are bright and fluffy, just like a chew toy."

"Hey! At least I don't look like some crazy psycho clown."

"Kankuro! Naruto!" Sakura raised her fist. "Cut it out." She lowered her voice. "Really Kankuro, is this how Ebizo-jii-sama's representative should act?"

Kankuro wrinkled his nose. He had had this same lecture from Baki, Gaara, and Temari before he left. "Yeah, yeah, I know. Don't worry when I need to behave, I will. And c'mon, this isn't some S-rank. We were invited to help out, you guys as observers and to lend a hand with security. Easy work. Actually, I'm the only one who'll probably earn his pay on this week."

Sakura snorted. "Oh really? And the other night was…"

"A little exercise." He held up one hand, preventing Sakura from saying anything more. He lowered his voice. "And the reason for the scouting."

"Oh…"

Kankuro flicked a quick look over one shoulder. Miri had not returned and it was a few minutes past the time they had agreed upon for her reconnaissance. She was not so late that he was worried, not that he would, Miri was more than able to take care of herself, but it meant that she had found something of interest.

Easy mission, my ass, he thought, never had one of those. And something has not been right about this from the start.

Kankuro knew that Koyuki and the two Leaf shinobi had remained friends after they had helped her reclaim her inheritance, so he had not shared any of his suspicions about her with them. While it made sense to invite experts like Ebizo to help out, there was really no reason to invite the Leaf shinobi. Kankuro looked at the Snow kunoichi a moment.

After all, couldn't she just get protection from her own people? Unless…she doesn't trust them, he thought. And why now? That machine's been slowly failing for a few years. It's a real mystery. I hate fucking mysteries.

But there was no point in worrying Sakura and Naruto until there was something definitive to worry about. And Kankuro knew that Naruto was likely to run off half cocked and do something stupid if he heard of any hint of danger against Koyuki. People were always telling Kankuro that he was reckless, but he was nothing compared to Naruto.

"I appreciate the concern Takahashi, but it's fine. She'll find us when she's ready. So let's get going." He draped one arm over Sakura's shoulder. "You're all pink from the cold. It's pretty cute. You can sit next to me in those sleigh things they sent and I'll warm you up."

"Hey! Stop that!" Naruto exclaimed, his face going red.

"Don't get your panties in a bunch." Kankuro's other arm snaked around Naruto's neck. "Plenty of room for you too."

He began to walk, dragging a protesting Naruto along with him. Sakura gave him a smack and slipped free, but she started to walk too. Takahashi looked like he was going to say something else, but then turned and began to make arrangements for their bags. Sakura saw Nejibana shoot Kankuro a sour look before he turned away.

It's just like Kankuro, she thought, he's goofing around, but he's watching everything very closely. He's got to know that that little act of his doesn't fool me anymore.

She made a mental note to ask him about what Miri reported back to him. As she climbed into the sleigh, she saw Kankuro take a quick look back at the train and for a brief moment he looked worried.


	7. Chapter 7

Seven

Sakura did not get a chance to talk to Kankuro later, and the next day the meetings started early. She, Naruto, and Miri were allowed to observe as the group of experts met with Koyuki to discuss the problem. The meeting had gone on for most of the morning; it was a technical discussion and sometimes difficult to follow. Sakura did her best to pay attention, she was going to have to report back on what was discussed, but it was hard.

Miri was sitting beside her and Naruto on a bench set to one side of the room. Naruto was staring, mesmerized, at the other woman's hands. Sakura had to grin a little at the sight. Miri was the complete opposite of Kankuro in many respects, but completely like him in others. Neither could sit still for any length of time, but while Kankuro was drumming the table with his fingers and tapping an impatient foot on the floor, Miri was quietly amusing herself. A length of thin braided leather was strung between her hands and as Sakura watched, several shapes appeared and disappeared between the woman's nimble fingers.

Nejibana was talking and had been for some time. He was an engineer from the Land of Snow who had already spent some time trying to fix the machine. He was talking about the potential of the machine once it was fixed. He was trying to convince Koyuki that it could be used for more than just regulating the seasons.

Nejibana came to the end of what he was saying. "And, in closing, Kazahana-sama, I must reiterate, it is vital that we treat this as an opportunity to expand our horizons and position ourselves among the great nations."

He made a dramatic gesture with one hand and sat down. He glared across the table at Kankuro. The Sand shinobi's derisive snort had been loud.

Nejibana looked down his nose at Kankuro. "I can understand why you might be against this land getting stronger and perhaps becoming a threat to you, Kankuro-san. It's what one might expect, after all, you are brother to one Kazekage and son to another. Loss of power and status is the one thing your father feared most. I imagine that it is what drove him to…"

Kankuro rose to his feet, growling.

"Please, Nejibana-san. Kankuro-san has graciously come here in a different capacity today," Koyuki interjected. "Dragging out past problems will not help us make our future better. And you already know my feelings on this matter." She turned to Kankuro. "Please excuse Nejibana-san. He only wants the best for our people. I am sure that you understand the feeling."

Kankuro grunted and settled back in his seat.

"Interesting," Miri murmured.

"What is?" Sakura asked, keeping her voice low.

"What she said." Miri concentrated on her hands for a few moments. "Did you know Sakura, that Kazahana-sama and Nejibana-san are related?"

Sakura shook her head.

"Cousins of some sort. Through her uncle, Kazahana Dote."

Sakura's eyes went wide. "Really…"

"Not much of a resemblance then?"

Sakura considered the man a moment. "Now that you mention it…a little I guess."

"Do you believe her, Sakura?"

"About?" Sakura frowned; sometimes it was hard to have a conversation with Miri. Her mind always seemed to be on several things at once.

"Other possible uses for that machine. You know her, is she sincere?"

"Of course she is," Naruto said. His voice rose. "Koyuki-chan would never…"

Several heads turned their way.

"Naruto! Keep it down," Sakura hissed.

They sat in silence until everyone had returned their attention to the meeting.

"Do you agree with him, Sakura?"

"I do."

"I had a nice walk the other day. I needed to stretch my legs after that long train ride. Kankuro does not appreciate snow…or walks for that matter…" She saw the impatient look forming on Sakura's face. "I will come to the point. Nejibana-san brought a modest amount of luggage with him to this place, but he also had a whole train car full of stuff. Thing is, those items were not delivered here. The car was moved to another engine car and sent off on its own."

"Where?"

"Not sure."

"What was in it?"

"I have no idea."

Sakura made a frustrated noise.

"Sorry Sakura. But there is a difference between idly curious and nosy curious. One gets remembered while the other does not."

Sakura sighed. "You're right. Should we find out what was on it?"

Miri nodded.

"What do you think he's doing?"

"Speculation is pointless just now." Miri lifted her hands to inspect the intricate pattern of loops and twists she had made. She wiggled her fingers and the whole thing shifted; watching it made Sakura a little dizzy. "Interesting tangle though, eh?"

-0000-

Naruto leaned over the balcony railing and sighed. He stuck his tongue out and let a snow flake land on it. It had been snowing for most of the day, nothing heavy, but steady, so now most things were buried under a blanket of snow.

Sakura was with Koyuki, Naruto was not sure, but it had sounded like they were going to look at her kimonos. She had been gone for a couple of hours; it seemed like way too long to spend looking at clothes.

"Humph, girls." He folded his arms over the railing, slumped a little, and sighed.

Kankuro had been right, it was an easy mission. Things had gotten of to a promising start (in Naruto's opinion) with the fight at the docks, but then everything had slowed right down to a snail's pace. The meeting had been boring and the dinner after had been formal and boring. Things were not going as he had hoped. Whenever he got time alone with Sakura, he found that he could not get out the things he wanted to say.

"This sucks," he muttered. "Maybe I should just forget about it. Maybe I'm wrong."

But he could not let it go. He wanted to tell Sakura how he felt but he also wanted to be sure that his feelings were right. Otherwise he might just end up making things bad between them.

"There had to be some way to know. Someone should be able to tell me."

He thought about who he could ask.

"Kakashi-sensei? No, he'll probably show me something out of Ero-sennin's books. Yamato-sensei? No, he'll make a face and tell me to talk to Kakashi-sensei. Ino? Sai?" Naruto whacked his forehead. "No. Just no. Idiot, what are you thinking? Iruka-sensei? Hmm, maybe, but then I'd have to wait until I got home."

He sighed again and slumped lower, resting his chin on his arms. A light flickered in the room next to his; it was the one Kankuro was sharing with Miri.

"Of course!" He straightened up.

There was someone he could ask! Someone who would be serious and not tease him. Naruto vaulted over the balcony railing, across to the next balcony, rattled the door handle, and finding it unlocked, opened it.

"Hello," he called out. The room was empty, but it looked like someone had been working at the table; it was covered in papers and diagrams. Naruto took another step into the room, closing the door behind him.

"Uh, hey, Miri are you here?"

"Fuck, Uzumaki, are you trying to get a kunai between your ribs?" Kankuro's voice rumbled in his ear.

Naruto yelped and spun around. Kankuro was standing next to the door, half hidden in the shadows.

"What the hell, Kankuro? Don't scare me like that!"

"Shouldn't that be my line?" Kankuro strolled over to the table and sat down. "Most people use the inside doors, you know. And they knock."

"I…uh…well…" Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "Sorry, but it was faster." Something occurred to him. "Why was the door unlocked? That's not too smart, Kankuro."

The Sand shinobi snorted. "Like I wouldn't hear you coming. And you should know that locks aren't the only thing a shinobi can put on an entrance. Miri must've left it unlocked when she went out. She's as bad as you about that kind of thing."

"Oh. She's out. Is she with Sakura and Koyuki-chan?"

"No way. She said something about a meteor shower." Kankuro gestured at the papers on the desk. "What do you want, Naruto? I'm a little busy here."

"Oh, nothing," Naruto said. No way was he going to tell Kankuro why he was there. "I was looking for Miri. I'll just go."

"Let me know what you want and I'll tell her when she gets back."

"Nah, that's okay."

"She'll want to know why you were here."

"No, no, it's nothing important. Really." Naruto waved his hand and thought quickly, trying to come up with a way to change the subject. His eyes fell on the papers on the table. "So, are you having any luck?"

Kankuro shrugged. "Ebizo-jii-sama and I went through the blue prints and reports before I got here. Seeing the machine up close just confirmed what we already suspected. The machine itself is still in pretty good shape, the problem is the power supply." He tapped the papers on the table. "When you guys first triggered the machine, it released a massive pulse of chakra and that's what's been powering it until recently."

"So you just have to get more chakra, right?"

"It's not quite that simple. It was a huge pulse. Someone…no a bunch of people, must've spent years storing it up. You could do that again, but it would take too much time. Kazahana-sama needs it repowered and tuned up in the next couple of years. The tune up part is easy, but finding a power source will be harder."

Naruto scratched his head. "So, just add a plug or something to it and let it recharge for awhile."

Kankuro snorted. "It's not like charging a battery…well maybe it is, but we're talking massive amounts of power here, especially as it starts up." Kankuro shuffled some papers around. "I did some calculations just to see how much of their current resources it would take. It would take an amount of energy equivalent to what would keep the lights on for about six months. They'd have to build another power plant and then probably import coal or maybe oil to do it. It would be a huge financial burden. Koyuki-sama really wants to avoid having to borrow from some other land; she doesn't want to end up in debt to anyone."

"But doesn't she do that already? And why can't she just use coal from here?"

"She does trade, but so far it's pretty balanced and she wants to keep it that way. And while this land is pretty rich in minerals and other resources, most of it is really hard to get to because it's under snow and ice most of the time. Actually that is one of her reasons for getting the thing fixed. It would give her more access to those resources and put her in a better position as far as trade is concerned. But right now, it's a pretty shitty Catch-22 for her."

"Yeah, I guess so," Naruto agreed. "So, once you figure out a power source, then you can fix it? How hard can it be just to pick one?"

"There's a lot of options: coal, oil, hydro, solar, geo-thermal, and even the original source, chakra." Kankuro paused, looking at the papers on the desk. His glance fell on one pile. It was Nejibana's proposal. He thumped his fist on it.

"It's this idiot's idea to use chakra again."

"Won't chakra work this time?" Naruto asked.

"Didn't I just say it would? Thing is, he wants to focus on chakra based power by modifying some of the machines that Kazahana Dote used." Kankuro looked at Naruto. "You remember those, right?"

Naruto grimaced and pressed one hand to his stomach. "Yeah. No way should anyone ever be hooked up to one of those."

"Damn right. In his proposal he says that he already has a prototype built that will work better. He says that he can use it to amplify the chakra he collects and generate more power, but…"

"You can't think that's a good idea Kankuro!"

"If they want to get that machine up and running it's something to consider. What I don't like is that it sounds way too much like the original which had other uses. Like as a weapon. And I don't like that he didn't include any designs for his so-called prototype. When I asked him about it, he blew it off with some bull shit about how the details were beyond the grasp of a doll maker." Kankuro's lip curled into a snarl. "Bastard!"

Naruto chewed on his lip a moment, trying to sort out everything Kankuro had said. "Is Koyuki-chan in any danger? Because if she is…"

"Take it easy, Naruto. She's safe. I'll bet the reason Sakura's with her right now is to keep an eye on her. And Miri's probably prowling around on a roof somewhere with one eye on the sky and the other watching for anything strange. Your friend's probably safer right now than she's been in a long time."

"I guess. But Sakura…"

"Is a student of one the sannin, just like you were, and a jounin. Even I'll admit she's tough, despite being a Leafie."

"Hey! But you're right, she is tough. Tough and smart and nice and pretty and…" Naruto trailed off when he saw the smirk on Kankuro's face. "What?" He felt his face go red. "Well, she is!"

"No argument from me. I've noticed how she looks." Kankuro grinned. "Actually I did a little more than just notice."

"What?" Naruto's eyes went wide. "You didn't!"

"I tried, back when she was obsessed with that Uchiha idiot, so I didn't have a chance." Kankuro chuckled. "Lucky for you I'm with Miri or you'd have some competition."

Kankuro laughed louder as Naruto started to sputter, then something occurred to him. "But haven't you messed it up already? Didn't she make some big speech about how she felt and you just blew it off?"

"No! That was different. I was…how'd you know about that anyways?"

"Kiba."

"Oh, right. Well, that was…" Something occurred to Naruto, he had wondered about it before but had never had the chance to ask. "You know, I always thought that you and him…ah…that you…"

Kankuro raised an eyebrow. "Liked guys."

Naruto nodded.

"I do. It is possible to be interested in both." Kankuro grinned. "But you already knew that."

Naruto felt a flush burn through his cheeks right to the tips of his ears. "That was…he just…I…"

Kankuro held up one hand to stop him. "You don't have to explain it to me." He laughed. "Man, you have the same look on your face as Temari did when she asked me the same thing. She still doesn't quite get it."

"Does Miri know?"

"Yeah, but apparently she's a little more open minded about these things. But like I said, haven't you blown your chance?"

"That was…she was just trying to get me to give up on Sasuke. She didn't really mean it." Naruto paused, chewing on his lip, not sure if he should ask the question on his mind. Kankuro would probably just laugh at him, but they were sort of on the subject. "So then…with Miri…how did you know?"

"Know what?"

"That she was…well…the one."

Kankuro wrinkled his nose. "So _that's_ why you're looking for her and bugging me. Damn, Naruto you're pathetic sometimes."

"Never mind then." Naruto's embarrassment started to turn to irritation.

But, much to his surprise, Kankuro continued, "It's not like some sign appeared above her head or anything. It's not like in one of those stupid books, there's no big flash, no lightning." He looked up at the ceiling. "It wasn't until she left that I knew." He looked back at Naruto. "But you probably didn't want to hear that."

Naruto scratched his head.

"I asked her about it…about why she would put herself through it all for me; leave her family, her home. Do you want to know what she said?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, but if you laugh, I swear I'll kick your ass back to Konoha. She said…well she said a bunch of stuff, you know how she gets…but mostly it was this: it's because I see her."

"Huh, I don't get it. Of course you see her."

"Not like that, idiot!" Kankuro made an exasperated noise. "It's like…well, it's like how when most people look at me all they see is some loud guy with the puppets and the face paint or they see the son of some guy most people still hate. But she sees…hell…I don't what she sees, but she sees beyond all that. Do you get it?"

"Sort of, I guess. Doesn't really help me though, Kankuro." Naruto sighed.

"Yeah, well what'd you expect. I'm a shinobi, not some councilor to the pathetic. But Naruto…and I've said this before, but a lot of this is because of you."

"Huh?"

"Because of what you did for Gaara, I learned to see him, not the demon, so when I met her…" He shrugged. "I could see past the demon."

"Sakura does that," Naruto said, half to himself.

"She does," Kankuro agreed. "But can she see past the idiot?"

"Hey! Way to ruin the moment!"

"So, you don't disagree that you're an idiot?" Kankuro brushed off the fist Naruto waved at him. "So…you like her, she accepts you, she's cute. What's the problem? Damn, Naruto, when did you start to think about these things? Just jump right in like you usually do."

"But this is really important. How do I know? How do I…"

"Gah!" Kankuro smacked his forehead. "We're right back at the start of this sappy conversation. Damn, when it came to saving everyone you charged right in, but now you're hesitating. C'mon Naruto, either shit or get off the pot."

Naruto made a face. "That's not very nice, Kankuro."

"Yeah, well maybe, but it's true. So, are we done with whatever this was?" He tapped the papers on the table. "Unlike the rest of you, I have actual work to do."

"Uh, yeah, I guess. Uh, thanks Kankuro."

Kankuro muttered something and flapped one hand at Naruto, his attention already back on the stack of notes on the table.

Naruto left the way he came and a few minutes later was back on the balcony, sighing heavily. "Of course she sees me, not _him_," he muttered. "She always has, right from the start, but…" he sighed again and closed his eyes.

"You sound leaky, are you alright, Naruto?" The voice came from just above his head.

Naruto yelped and jumped back from the face hanging upside down in front of him. "Miri, what are you doing up there?"

"Asking you a question." She cocked her head. "So, are you okay? That is an odd expression. Usually after a conversation with Kankuro people look angry, shocked, annoyed, frustrated, or some combination thereof." She paused, thinking. "Except for Gaara. He mostly looks…well…like Gaara."

"I'm fine. I…hey, how'd you know I was talking to Kankuro?"

"I can see your footprints on the balcony from here. It is a distinctive tread mark you leave." She held out one hand. "Since you are alright, come walk with me."

"Okay." Naruto let her pull him onto the roof and then followed her up the slope.

"There is a flat bit at the top here that makes a good perch."

Naruto nodded, he was concentrating on his footing. When they got to the top, he realized something. "Hey, how'd you do that without chakra?"

Miri lifted one foot and pointed at the leather harness on her boot. "Cleats. Good for snow, ice, tree climbing, and…" she shook her foot, making the metal spikes rattle, "kicking ass when the occasion requires." She looked up. "It is a very nice night."

"Yeah. Kankuro said you were watching a meteor shower."

"I was. Most entertaining." She gestured towards the large circular driveway that was in front of the building. "Some interesting things going on at earth level. Nejibana-san and his cat-nin have left the building. They left after dinner and there is no sign of them returning. I watched until I lost sight of them. It looks like they were leaving the city." Miri grinned. "He also visited with Kankuro and _he_ left with the expected expression on his face. Very red and _very_ agitated."

"Is he up to something? Is Koyuki-chan okay? And Sakura?"

"I do not know. She is and so is Sakura." Miri rubbed her nose. "Kankuro believes he is, but he is a shinobi and therefore somewhat neurotic as a rule. I am not sure if he is being sinister or behaving like an inventor trying to guard his secrets and disrespect the competition." She paused. "Or perhaps both…hmm. What do you think, Naruto?"

Naruto frowned. "I don't trust the guy. Kankuro said he wants to use machines like the ones Kazahana Dote used. There's no way that's right. And he…" Naruto paused, trying to come up with the right words, "Koyuki-chan wants to do this to help her people, to make things better for them, but all he keeps talking about is how he can generate power for other stuff. He doesn't care about helping anyone."

Miri made a tsking noise. "So, we have the gut instincts of two shinobi and no hard evidence. Very thin. However, your guts tend to be pretty reliable, Naruto."

"Then let's go find Nejibana and make him tell us what he's up to."

Miri made a face.

"Well, we can't just sit around!"

"We do not. We keep our eyes, ears, and noses open. And we wait."

Naruto made a disgruntled noise.

"I know, it is difficult." Miri shrugged. "Why did you go to see Kankuro anyways?"

"Huh? Oh, that. Well…"

Naruto's answer was interrupted by a loud blast and flash of light. Bright white light flashed from the forested hills outside the town.

"What the…?"

Miri held up one hand, her eyes were focused on the light flash and her long nose had flared. When the last of the light from the blast faded, she snorted and shook her head. "Enough star gazing, Naruto." She turned and headed back down the roof top.

"Yeah. And enough waiting. Let's go!"


	8. Chapter 8

Eight

"Which way from here?" Kankuro asked. "Which is shorter?"

"And has less snow," Sakura added. "I didn't realize so much fell overnight." Something occurred to her. "Shouldn't there be some melting here, from the explosion?"

"There was nothing ex- about it," Miri said.

"Why don't we just go straight up?" Naruto said, before Sakura could ask Miri what she meant.

They all looked up to the top of the plateau that Miri thought was the center of the blast she and Naruto had seen the previous night. The vertical rock face was covered in ice and snow.

"We'll be pretty exposed if someone is waiting for us up there," Sakura said. "It might be smarter to go around."

Miri tilted her head back and scented the air. "No sign of anyone. Very few sounds of life either. Almost too quiet, but not because of a human presence. It is not a bad idea. We are less likely to have to worry about disturbing foot prints leading to or from the site if we go this way." She began to rummage around in her back pack. "Good idea Naruto."

Kankuro snorted. "Now there's three words I never thought I'd hear together."

"Hey! I've had lots of good ideas!" Naruto started to stretch in preparation for the climb. "And I have a pretty good idea about who's gonna be last to the top."

"In your dreams Uzumaki."

Sakura shot them a dirty look. "We'll drop a rope for you when we get to the top, Miri."

"Thank-you very much for the offer Sakura, but I can manage on my own." Miri held her hands out. She had strapped a set of spikes across her palms. She stomped her feet to knock the snow off the cleats strapped to her boots. "In fact, I shall probably manage better than some shinobi I know."

"Hah! No way! You're up against the all time, all around, tree climbing champ here!" Naruto jerked a thumb at his chest.

"Hmm, perhaps." Miri waved one hand at the cliff face. "But this is not a tree."

She jumped up, kicking and slapping the spikes into the ice, and began to climb at a rapid pace.

"Hey, that's pretty smart," Naruto said.

"That's Miri, brains and brawn." Kankuro slapped Naruto's back. "Don't take too long, okay."

"Yeah, right. I'll be waiting at the top for you, watching you drag your big butt up."

"Please, I don't want to hear about your fantasies."

"Pfft, you're a…"

"Stop it you two. This isn't a picnic. Get going." Sakura shook her fist at them.

Sakura made it to the top first, Miri and Naruto arrived next in a dead heat, followed by Kankuro.

"I beat you," Naruto wheezed out between breaths.

"Humph, I was going slow on purpose, to enjoy the view," Kankuro wheezed back. He grinned at Miri.

She rolled her eyes. "You are ever the opportunist."

"What're you talking about?" Naruto asked.

"Heh. Pretty nice bubble butt, Uzumaki."

"Hey!" Naruto slapped his hands over his behind. "Quit looking at my ass!"

Miri repacked the spikes from her hands and then took a moment to get her bearings. "It is this way."

"Right," Sakura said. She pointed at Kankuro and Naruto. "Alright you two, that's enough."

"Yeah, yeah." Kankuro stomped his feet.

"Are you okay? You're making a face."

"No problems, Sakura. I'm still not used to these boots. Don't know how Miri wears the damn things all the time. It's a damn pain to channel chakra through them."

"It did not seem to hinder Sakura at all," Miri said. "It was very impressive climb."

"Thank-you." Sakura knew that it was probably the wrong thing to do after scolding Kankuro and Naruto, but she could not help it. "I had to remind Naruto who the _real_ all time tree climbing champ was." She grinned.

Naruto laughed. "Yeah, I guess that's right."

"So the skills you acquired on trees were sufficient. Interesting." Miri rubbed her nose, looking thoughtful. "Given the abundance of rock faces near Suna, I would have expected you to be more adept, Kankuro."

"Hey! I just said, it's the boots!"

"Hmm." Miri did not look convinced. "May we go now?"

They began to walk.

"So do you think there'll be any trail left to follow?" Naruto asked.

"We will know when we get there," Miri said.

"Don't worry Naruto. She may suck at climbing…"

"Excuse me?"

"Hey, who had to use cleats? But, she's great at tracking. I've seen her track some weird shit right out of this world."

"Yeah, like what?"

"I am afraid you do not have the appropriate clearance for that, Naruto. Kankuro could tell you, but then he would have to kill you," Miri said.

Kankuro laughed at the dismayed expression on Naruto's face. "You heard her. Make jounin and then maybe we can talk. C'mon, let's go."

"It can't be too far," Sakura said after a few minutes. "But I still don't see any sign of an explosion."

"That is because it was not. At least not mostly," Miri said. "It started that way, but then it turned into something else."

Sakura wrinkled her nose and looked at Kankuro, hoping for a less confusing explanation.

"From her description, it sounds like an explosion, followed quickly by some sort of implosive event," Kankuro said.

"What's that?" Naruto asked.

"The opposite of an explosion, instead of blowing out, objects collapse on themselves. It can also be used as a way to concentrate energy and matter."

Naruto frowned; Kankuro had said that last bit as though it was supposed to be significant. The Sand shinobi saw the confused look on Naruto's face and rolled his eyes.

"As in it's possibly a way to collect, concentrate, and amplify an energy source. But it's really dangerous and…" Kankuro shot Naruto another significant look, "has possible weapons applications."

"Oh! You mean like what that Nejibana guy was talking about. Then he did this!" Naruto started to walk faster. "So we need to hurry and get to the bottom of things before he does anything really bad."

"We need proof first, Naruto." Miri held out her arm to prevent the Leaf shinobi from sprinting by her. "We are here. Let me check things out first."

Sakura looked ahead. They had finally come to a site that matched her expectations; signs of a blast that had ripped up the ground.

"Go on, we'll keep an eye out," Kankuro said.

Miri nodded and moved forward, pacing around the blast zone in a spiral that led to its center which was marked by a set of odd indentations in the snow. When she reached the center Miri crouched down over the marks. After inspecting them, she reached down and pushed her fingers into the ground. The contact lasted only a moment and she pulled her hand away as though it had been burned and stood. She wiped her hand on her jacket and walked towards the waiting shinobi.

"What?" Kankuro asked.

"It is…" Miri frowned. "I do not know a word for it."

"Are you okay?" Sakura asked. She was not sure what to make of the look on Miri's face.

"I am sorry, it is _that_. It is…" Miri's frown deepened and then she said something in her own language. She shook herself and snorted as though she was trying to clear a bad smell out of her nose. "Go and see. It is safe." She pointed ahead. "I see tracks there. I will go look at them now."

Sakura and Naruto followed Kankuro into the circle.

"What did she say to you, Kankuro?"

The Sand shinobi did not answer; instead he crouched down and inspected the ground just as Miri had done.

"Fuck," he said after a moment. He looked up. "It's kinda hard to translate. Her people have a really weird language. Like," he gestured around, "there's about fifty different ways to say snow, depending on how much water there is in it, how old it is, what time of year it fell. What she said just now means something like…absolute death."

"Huh? But dead is dead, how can something be absolutely dead?" Naruto made a face.

"Yeah, it's weird, but it's…think of a dead body. Even though the heart has stopped there's still stuff happening, right. Bacteria keep on working, cells start to break down. Stuff like that."

"You mean decay," Sakura said.

"Right. The body's decaying, but it's a biochemical process and you could say that it's still a sort of _life_." He saw the confused looks on their faces. "Shit, it's hard to explain." He pointed at the ground. "You're a medic Sakura, check out the soil. Normally, even in the winter, there should be some bacterial activity, dormant seeds, maybe even some bug in a cocoon. But it's all gone, all the energy…all the potential…just gone. Nothing's ever going to grow here again."

Sakura reached out and tested the soil. "You're right. This isn't even soil any more really." She rubbed her fingers on her jacket, just like Miri had done. "This is awful. Why would someone…? Oh!"

Kankuro saw the comprehension in her eyes. "Yeah. Suck the energy out of stuff and use it elsewhere." He paused, thinking. "What I don't get is: why here?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why do something like this here?" He pointed to the marks on the ground. "It looks like they dragged some equipment or something out here for this. Seems like a lot of bother for no damn reason." Kankuro snorted. "I hate fucking mysteries."

"It's him, isn't it?" Naruto said. "So, let's go stop him."

"We still have to find him first." Sakura nodded in Miri's direction. "Is she going to be okay?"

"Yeah. Just give me a moment."

Sakura nodded and watched Kankuro walk over to join Miri. It always made her happy and sad at the same time when she saw how well things had worked out for Kankuro. She was happy to see that he had found something special with the foreign swordswoman, but she would sometimes wonder if she would ever find someone for herself. And that would sometimes make her sad. She had learned the hard way that it was an unrealistic expectation, the life of a shinobi did not lend itself to a happy domestic situation. There were exceptions of course, and Sakura could not let go of the hope that she might be one of them someday.

Kankuro stopped beside Miri, who was crouched over tracks in the snow. "So?"

"Four people and some equipment, that is, two people dragging a third and another dragging something heavy." Miri paused. "It is disconcerting."

Kankuro raised an eyebrow. "Oh yeah."

Miri dusted snow away from the tracks, revealing a dark smudge trampled by foot prints. Kankuro's tracking skills were not as good as Miri's, but he did know blood when he saw it.

Miri leaned forward, nose twitching as she peered at the stain. "This fell not long before the explosion. Female." She stood. "I know you do not make these distinctions, but among my people, what we have seen here is evidence of the very worst kind of theft. Theft of life, of the potential for life. And on top of that, the type of technology and arts used to build a machine that could do this…" she gave Kankuro a sharp look. "I hope that I am not going to hear any of those 'in the right hands it could do some good' arguments from you."

"Nope. Ebizo-jii-sama might be pissed that we trashed it before he got a look, though."

"Most likely." Miri rubbed her forehead. "This has stirred up some unpleasant memories…but not mine that is the disconcerting bit. _She_ remembers what it was like for her previous host to be drained to death and she was aware of what it was like for the others too." Miri pressed both hands to her face. "Do not worry," she muttered. "I will not let that happen. You are safe, just as I promised."

Kankuro stepped closer. "Miri…"

Miri held out one hand. "I am fine. Give us a moment."

Kankuro nodded, but he remained tense, it was unusual to see any sign of her bijuu. After years of watching Gaara's explosions of violence, it was sometimes easy to forget that Miri was also a jinchuuriki. The strange bond they shared combined with Miri's immense will power usually kept it under control.

Miri wiggled the fingers of her outstretched hand and Kankuro stepped closer so she could press her palm against his chest, centered over his heart. After a few moments, she dropped her hand from her face.

"Okay?"

"Much better, thank-you." She smiled and patted his chest, then let her fingers trail away. "It always puzzles me how such wild heart can be so comforting."

Kankuro leaned closer. "That's no mystery, because we both know that deep down you're just as crazy as me, maybe even more."

Miri smiled and stepped closer to him, eyes dark with something other than the demon's presence. Kankuro's mouth was a few centimeters from hers when she stepped back with a regretful sigh.

"Ah, sorry. It does not matter how often I try, I just cannot do it. The stuff on you face smells and tastes horrible. Maybe if you would consider a pattern that does not cover your mouth…" She rolled her shoulders and stretched. "We should move on."

"Right. Well maybe later, after I've washed my face."

"Most definitely."

Kankuro grinned and waved at Sakura and Naruto.

Sakura heaved a sigh of relief and starting walking.

"Don't worry about her Sakura, she's fine."

"Maybe. But you've got to remember Naruto, it's not like it is with you or Kirabi. She's more like Gaara-sama was with his bijuu. It's not all that obvious, but it is. And Kankuro…"

"She'd never hurt him."

"That's not entirely true."

"No!" Naruto shook his head. "Not ever again." Then he realized that Sakura was probably thinking about him and not Miri. "You either. I'm way stronger now and besides…never you…because you…"

"Naruto…"

This was not how he wanted the moment to unfold, but Naruto kept on going. "Most people, when they found out, they changed. But others just treated me like before. Like the big goof I am." Naruto rubbed the back of his head and grinned, thinking of all the whacks he had gotten from her. "Especially you. Even after some of the stuff you saw, you just… I never really realized it before, but it helped, it made me able to hang on, to stay me. And because of that and because you're you, I'll always…"

"Naruto," Sakura breathed, eyes wide, surprised by his sudden outburst and the earnest, almost desperate look on his face. "This isn't…"

"Hey, you two, hurry it up," Kankuro called. "Let's go find this idiot."

"Sakura, I…" Naruto took a deep breath. "Let's go."


	9. Chapter 9

Nine

They backtracked in silence for a while. Once or twice Sakura almost said something, She wanted to ask again if Miri was okay, but even more, she wanted to know what Naruto had been about to say. The outburst itself was nothing unusual, Naruto was always blurting things out without thinking much, but this had seemed different.

Their pace increased as Miri grew more confident in the trail, leading them through snow covered forest. Sakura had worked with her enough to know that she was as skilled as Kiba and Kakashi, even though she was not a shinobi. Kiba had asked her once how she had been trained. The dog-nin had quickly gotten bored with the detailed explanation and had wandered off, but Sakura had listened, just to be polite at first, but then impressed. Make some tracks in various types of soil, rock, or snow and observe them. Come back a few days later and observe again. Over time Miri had built up a huge visual catalogue of tracks and marks. And she had been trained to use her other senses in a similar manner. Sakura had marveled over the amount of patience, practice, and careful attention to detail that must have gone into the effort.

Miri made a low noise, almost a growl and made a sharp turn. In a few moments they saw evidence of a fight. The ground was churned up, earth mixed in with snow and several trees had been knocked over. The middle of the clearing was dotted with blood.

Sakura saw a lump; snow covering a different shade of pale. After a moment she realized what it was.

"Oh no!" she gasped and hurried over. The blood on the snow was not too old, so there still might be a chance. She bent over, fingers searching for a pulse in the thick fur of the tiger's neck. "No," she repeated. "No, no." She rocked back on her heels. "Too late."

"Sakura," Naruto murmured. He put one hand on her shoulder. After a moment she reached up and grasped it tightly.

"I'm alright," she said and sniffled.

Miri was looking around the area, automatically using the signs around her to build an image of the fight's progress. She made another low noise, this time it was a growl.

"What?" Kankuro asked.

"He used her to test it. The kunoichi who was protecting him. He used her."

"But why?"

"I do not know. Shall we go ask?" She started to turn away, but then paused. "Sakura."

Sakura looked up.

"We will come back for her. She died defending her mistress. A good death."

Sakura nodded and stood up, brushing her eyes.

"Sakura," Naruto said, his face full of concern.

"It's alright. You know how I get."

"Yeah, I do." He looked away and his face hardened. "That guy. He'll pay. For what he's trying to do…and for upsetting you."

They walked for another kilometer, the land starting to slope upwards, until they came to some railway tracks.

"I don't remember seeing these on any maps." Kankuro frowned down at the tracks. "Well, I think we've found out where that mysterious rail car was going."

Miri nodded. She closed her eyes and concentrated, using the demon's power to extend her senses. "There's something big at the end of these tracks. Big and hidden. Probably under that hill top."

"Let's go!" Naruto started to run.

"Wait!" Sakura made an irritated noise, and then ran after him.

"We should go back and get reinforcements," Miri said to Kankuro.

"Probably. But where's the fun in that. C'mon Miri, you know you want to go kick some ass over this as much as I do. And I can't let the Leaf get there first."

Miri paused, her common sense battling with rising blood lust. Kankuro was right, she did like a good fight, but only when all other options had been exhausted. But what she was feeling now was not her own battle instincts; instead it was the rising emotions of the demon, upset by the presence of blood and unnatural death.

"Easy now," she muttered. "No need to wave any tails around yet." She started to run. "But I am quite sure I will regret this."

Naruto ran, following the tracks until they disappeared into a tunnel. Miri had been right; it looked like there was some sort of base.

Sakura caught up with him, followed by Miri.

"Naruto, not so fast," she scolded.

Kankuro arrived, huffing and puffing. "Not one damn word," he wheezed before Miri could say anything about his lack of speed.

"Can we get into their hideout through here?" Naruto asked.

Miri peered into the darkness. "I believe so. That seems to be a platform ahead of us. Probably for the train. There should be a way in." She frowned. "Why are there no…"

But Naruto had already charged in.

"Naruto! Tone it down." Sakura had also noticed the lack of security. She followed with more caution, intending to drag Naruto back out so they could come up with some sort of plan.

Miri made an irritated noise. She and Kankuro followed more slowly.

"When will he learn? When he runs in like this, all that chakra blazing, he is a beacon that draws trouble."

Kankuro grunted his agreement. He was still catching his breath. Then Miri's words made something click in his head. "Fuck! Naruto! Sakura! Come back right now!"

"What?" A noise at the tunnel's entrance made Miri spin around. "Shit!"

"Yeah, shit is right. Deep shit." Kankuro watched a heavy metal door slam down across tunnel's entrance. "That wasn't an experiment last night. That was bait."

-0000-

Consciousness came back slowly, and the first thing Sakura heard was the same as the last thing she had heard: Kankuro swearing up a storm. When she tried to turn to tell him to be quiet, she found she could not. A few moments later her head cleared, and the reason for all the foul language became clear. Kankuro was standing beside her, hands pinned above his head by metal bands. Sakura looked up and saw that she was secured in a similar fashion.

They were in a large room with stone floors and walls. A row of machinery covered the walls, and Sakura could feel and hear a low hum. There was something else too, a feeling of static that made the hair on her arms stand up. The centre of the room was filled by a large, black sphere. Its surface pulsed and rolled in an odd way, and it was hard for her to look at it for more than a few moments at a time.

Kankuro was still swearing. "You son of a bitch! You really are clueless." He growled and tugged at his restraints, baring his teeth at Nejibana.

The other man sniffed. "You just can't bear to admit that I was right." He waved one hand at the machinery behind him. "It's working perfectly."

"Perfect? Are you that fucking dense? It's not working at all."

"Where's Naruto?" Sakura asked when Kankuro paused to glare at Nejibana.

"In there," Kankuro gestured at the sphere with his chin, "with Miri. Ass-face here thinks his going to get the demons' power from them and take over the world."

"You mean like he did to Miyako?" Sakura looked at him. "How could you? She was protecting you."

"She fulfilled her duty, like the good tool she was. And as for those…creatures… It's about time someone took control of their power." Nejibana pointed at them. "You shinobi have had their power for how many years? And for what? War. Destruction. Well, no more. Now it's my turn and I'll see that power used properly."

"_You'll_ see it used? Koyuki-sama doesn't know about this, does she? She would never allow this," Sakura said. "Naruto and Miri aren't creatures and they're not tools. They're _people_. You've no right to do this."

"I have as much right as the Leaf and Sand did. And as for my cousin, when the time comes I'm sure she'll see that this is for the best; that it is our time now. And if not…" Nejibana shrugged.

"What? You'll kill her too? How is that any better than what you just accused us of doing? Nejibana-san, please stop this, before it's too late."

"Save your breath, Sakura. Bastard's delusional. Sure, you were able make it work on a normal person with regular chakra, but this is something completely different. You can't convert that type of chakra into another energy form. It's too unstable. That's already been proven."

"Hah! Who's the delusional one here? You can see the truth with your own eyes!"

"Fuckwad! I can see damn well that it is not working! Maybe you should stop the bull for a moment and take a close look at the readings on that piece of shit you've built."

Nejibana stepped forward and hit Kankuro. "Your master may have had some skill, but I can see that he's passed little of it on to you. You should've stayed in your workshop with your dolls. Although," Nejibana chuckled, "on second thought, if you'd just stayed put, I'd only have one of those creatures. So I suppose I should thank-you for bringing that demon bitch right to me."

Kankuro snarled and threw himself at Nejibana so hard that Sakura thought he would pull his arms out of their sockets.

"So predictable." Nejibana laughed. "Fine. Let's take a look at my 'piece of shit'. I'll show you just how well it's working."

He turned around and went over to the line of machines. He stopped at one and gestured at a dial with a flourish. "As you can clearly see…"

Nejibana froze and Sakura could see the colour drain from his face. His mouth worked silently for a few moments.

"Clear as the purple on my face, fucker," Kankuro snarled.

Nejibana just stared at them; Sakura could not make out the expression on his face. He stepped forward and for a moment she thought that he was going to come back and hit Kankuro again. Instead, he gestured to the two armed men who were waiting by the door, turned, and walked away. The metal door slammed shut with a crash followed by the unmistakable sound of a lock clicking into place.

"Like running's going to help, bastard." Kankuro worked his jaw and snorted. "Fucker hits like a genin…a Leaf genin."

"Kankuro!" Sakura tugged at her restraints.

"Heh. Well, it's true. Anyway, can you bust out of those?"

"I don't know." Sakura made an effort. After several tries she slumped, puffing a little from the effort. "Sorry. I can't quite get the right angle on them."

"Fuck." Kankuro saw the look on her face. "No need to apologize, Sakura. It's not your fault."

Kankuro stared at the machinery in front of them for a moment, his expression intent and serious. Sakura felt a chill slip down her spine. If Kankuro was being serious and even apologizing, then they were in real trouble.

"Should've seen this coming. From the second we got here… That attack in the harbor Sakura, was an attempt to bring them here. That damn dragon…"

"It was hollow inside," Sakura said, remembering the report. "So, it was supposed to capture Miri and Naruto and bring them here."

"On ice. Although I'd guess Naruto was the target. No one really knew that I was coming until I got here. Then you guys were late, so it screwed things up. And then, like an idiot, I went and brought her straight here. Fuck!"

"No, it's not your fault either, Kankuro." Sakura chewed on her lip, trying to sort everything out and get focused. "You said he was running. Why?"

"Because this big piece of crap in front of us is going to become one hell of a big bomb in a short while."

"But you said it wasn't working."

"It's not. He's trying to extract the chakra from the demons and convert it, but that can't be done."

"But that's what Kazahana Dote did. The Akatsuki too."

"That's only partially right. Kazahana Dote took regular chakra and used it to enhance armour and stuff. Basically, he was powering jutsu that had already been built into them. The climate control machine worked pretty much the same way. The Akatsuki weren't even doing that. They were trying to gain control of the demons and use their combined power as it was naturally. Those guys may have been bat shit crazy, but they weren't stupid. What Nejibana's trying do is."

"I don't get it."

"Don't really have a huge amount of time for a science lesson, Sakura, but…think of a hydro damn. It takes the power of the water and converts it to electricity. But that just won't work here. Their chakra is too different and unless you've got all nine of them, it's just too unstable. Why do you think the Akatsuki were trying to capture all of them, saving the most powerful for last?"

"I get it, I think."

"The amount of energy would be huge, but incredibly instable. Ebizo-sensei and some others think that the original demon came here from another dimension, before it was split into nine different creatures. And the energies from that dimension aren't compatible with ours. Maybe that's part of the reason why they do better when they're sealed into a host. The jinchuuriki acts as a buffer as well as a prison."

Kankuro's stopped his explanation, interrupted by a loud crackle. The dark sphere's vibrations were changing, becoming more erratic.

"It's getting smaller, isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"We have to get them out, before…"

"No shit."

"How long have we got?"

"I have no idea. Depends on how long they can keep the chakra contained. They know what he's trying to do, so they'll try to fight it."

"How do we help? Can't you just shut it down?"

"It might be too late for that. I need a closer look at the equipment. And for that," Kankuro tugged at the bands around his wrists, "I need out. At least we won't have to worry about that idiot Nejibana. He's probably half-way to the sea by now." Kankuro snorted. "Like that'll help."

"What does that mean?"

"Not only is he an idiot, he's a greedy idiot. He thought that he'd get twice the energy by tossing them both in at once. Thing is, it's more like mixing oil and water… No, more like water into acid."

"How bad?"

"The whole island for sure, and beyond that…" Kankuro shrugged. "Well, pretty fucking big."


	10. Chapter 10

Ten

"Naruto."

"Umph, ten more minutes."

"Naruto!"

Someone was tugging on his leg. He tried to roll over, and then started to thrash around when he realized that he was floating in the air and not tucked in his bed.

"Stop! Naruto, stop flailing."

He wind milled his arms a few more times, trying to sit up. He was floating in the semi-dark and there was a funny buzzing in his ears and his spine.

He looked down (at least he thought it was down). "Hey! What's going on?"

Miri tightened her grip on his leg. "Please be still. We need to stay together. Try to remember."

Naruto blinked and tried to do as she had requested. Miri took the moment to shift her grip, so she was holding onto his arm.

Naruto's eyes widened. "That guy! I'll… How do we get out of here? Where's Sakura?" He brought his hands together. "I'll get us out of here."

"Perhaps delay the pyrotechnics."

"Uh, okay." Naruto looked around. "How come this place looks so much bigger than the room we were in? Do you know how to get us out? We have to help Sakura and Kankuro."

"You have remembered. Good. It is bigger because technically we are not in it any more. I am not sure how to get out, but I am reasonably sure an explosive jutsu is not the way."

"Huh?" Naruto made a face.

"Ah, sorry. I think we are in some sort of side or pocket dimension that Nejibana created as a means to extract our chakra…well not ours really, but…"

"What! We definitely have to get out then. He'd better not hurt Sakura." Naruto paused. "Are you sure? It doesn't feel like it did before."

"How is it different?"

Naruto thought a moment, trying to remember. "It really hurt. Like someone was zapping me and I could actually feel the chakra leaving my body. This is…I'm sort of tingly and maybe a little sleepy." Naruto shook his head. "I don't think it's working."

"I am afraid that it is."

Naruto peered at her and realized something. "You don't look so good Miri. Are you okay?"

"I have been better. It is affecting me at a faster rate. I wonder…" She chewed on her lip, thinking. "Did Kazahana Dote know that you were a junchuuriki?"

"Not at first, no."

"So it was probably your own chakra that was targeted by his instruments. And as for now…" She winced.

"Miri!"

"I am fine." Miri managed a weak smile. "I am going to have to start paying closer attention when Kankuro and Ebizo-sensei discuss chakra theories…or rather, when they argue about them. Here is what I think: I have been told that the chakra from a tailed demon has a different resonance that a human's."

"It's a different colour."

"So maybe Kazahana Dote's devices were tuned to the human frequencies, so they took your chakra. As your chakra was replenished by that of the kyuubi's it was retuned to match your own."

"Okaaay, and now…"

"Nejibana has targeted the jinchuuriki's chakra."

"So why can't I really feel anything? You do, right?"

"I am not sure and I do. Perhaps it is due to the difference in our seals. Yours has changed over the years, but at its core it is still designed to keep the kyuubi restrained. So right now it is acting as a barrier, a shield. In my case…" she shrugged. "You know I was never meant to be a jinchuuriki. My seal was for another purpose altogether."

After Gaara had been captured by the Akatsuki, another demon had escaped. As it fled, it began to vent its fear and anger on the towns along its route. When word of its rampage reached Miri's homeland, her people began preparations to defend their land, including the proactive measure of sending a guardian out. She was a member of an elite group who carried within them the collective knowledge and spirit of the land and acted as ambassadors, sentinels, and warriors.

Tracking the demon had been easy for the guardian; anyone could see and follow the trail of destruction. As she got closer, the guardian realized that the creature was horribly afraid and its fear was driving its rampage. She confronted the demon and while she could not destroy it, she was able to tire it out. Taking advantage of a break in the battle, she talked to it and was told a story of nine demons who were once one. The demon and its host had been driven away by his people, and had lived in fear until it had been trapped with several of its demon siblings. The demon had escaped, but being alone was difficult, and the pain and loneliness had driven it into a frenzy. And now it was lost, thousands of kilometers away from the others.

After hearing the story the guardian felt sorry for the creature, but her duty remained the same; it could not be allowed to damage her home. However, instead of continuing a hopeless battle, she offered to help the demon. The inner world that had been created during her training as a guardian could be modified to hold the demon, sheltering it from the outside.

"Stop all this fuss now," Miri had said. "I promise to keep you safe until we find your brothers. You won't be alone anymore and you won't hurt anyone else."

The demon had agreed and Miri had kept her word. At the end of the fight against the Akatsuki the demon had stayed with her new host, who in turn had stayed in Suna.

"She has willingly restrained her power while in me," Miri said. "Her only bonds are the trust between us…and those are not much good against this damn machine!"

"Then we have to get out of here now! Can't we find where they are? Just do that stuff you do when you're tracking someone."

"This is not quite the same Naruto. We are not even in the same place anymore."

"It feels the same to me. We can still breathe, so there's air, so I bet everything else works just the same. You can do it. I know you can!"

Miri made a noise, part exasperation, part laughter. Like almost everyone who met Naruto, she admired his positive energy, but there were times when his naivety could be frustrating.

"I appreciate the vote of confidence, but this is not the same. We are in another dimension, another world. There are no commonalities, no…oh!" Miri stopped, her face going blank.

"Miri? Hey, Miri!" Naruto gave her a shake, it seemed like she had been staring off into space forever. "Hey, are you okay?"

Miri's eyes refocused. "Sorry. We were having a short discussion about your theory. It just might work."

"It will! That's great! Uh, what theory?"

"Commonalities. This place and our world have the basics in common…or at least they should."

"Huh?"

"It is as you said, we will track our way back and the trail will be the most basic of bread crumbs. Oxygen, hydrogen. We will find those that came from our world and follow them. Of course, that presumes that the trail has not disappeared, that we have enough energy left, or it does not cause some weird reaction, or we…"

"It'll work. Let's get going."

"First we have to make a few adjustments." Miri held one hand up between them as though she was going to start hand signs. "Water, air. All need these most basic things."

Naruto felt the surge of power as she called two of the demon's tails.

"And now, a change of venue." Miri pressed the tips of her first two fingers against Naruto's forehead, just below the edge of his headband between his eyes.

There was a moment of disorientation and then Naruto was standing in a familiar place, in front of the gate that sealed the kyuubi.

"Fools, what are you doing here?" the demon growled.

"Please, elder brother, please help."

Naruto looked around, the second voice was unfamiliar. "Oh cool. So that's what it looks like. Er, what is it anyways?"

The demon of the five elements snorted. "I am not an 'it' and it is obvious what I am." The demon shook its long neck, waved its tails, and snorted again. "I disagree with you, host. He's an idiot."

"Hey! Take that back!" Naruto glared at the creature.

"Why are you here?" the kyuubi demanded again.

"You heard our conversation. You have probably figured out what I want to do," Miri said. "And why we have to work from here."

"Because you are weak."

"Only compared to you brother," the gobi said. "So please lend us your strength. You know it's the only way."

"No."

"I should not have to point this out," Miri said. "But you will be destroyed too. It will take some time, but it will happen."

The demon glared at them a moment. It turned so it had its back to them and curled into a ball. "Do what you want."

"Thank-you very much." Miri bowed politely.

Naruto planted his hands on his hips. "Hey, you cranky old fox! Don't be rude! You'd better help or I'll…"

"That is good enough, Naruto," Miri said. "We need to get started. We have to work together to do this. If you use your sensory mode you will be able to help follow the trail once we find it. We will follow it to where we entered and then find a way out."

"Right! Let's do it!" Naruto concentrated, flipping his hands through the signs until his perceptions had shifted. "Okay, ready. Now what?"

"Good. Let us show you the particles from our world. Then we will try to find their source. Simple, eh?"

"Sure. Just like I said."

Naruto concentrated hard. Soon he could see some sparkly lights appearing around them. They reminded Naruto a little how dust would float in the air when he cleaned his rooms on a sunny day. As more appeared, they formed path, heading off to their right.

"Cool," he murmured. "Let's go!"

Naruto started along the trail; using his arms and legs almost like he was swimming, towing Miri along with him. It felt like they had gone a long way when the trail started to disappear.

"What's happening? Are we there yet? Miri!"

Naruto gave her a shake. She lifted her head, she was very pale and Naruto could see sweat on her face.

"Sorry. Lost it," she gasped. "Too weak."

"Just keep trying. We have to be close." Naruto looked around. In his sensory state he could see the energy leaving their bodies floating away in all directions and he was getting really sleepy. He shook his head, trying to clear it so he could see again, but the trail was gone. He looked at Miri and realized that she was starting to look transparent, like she was disappearing, and it was getting hard to hold on to her.

"Miri, just a little further." He gave her another shake.

"Close. Right." Miri concentrated on staying conscious. "But… too weak. You will have to finish. At this distance…" Miri winced and curled up into a ball. "Easy for you. Just find… You know…"

"Miri!" Naruto looked around. "But I don't see anything!" He chewed on his lip, trying to think what to do. "If we are close, then maybe they can hear us. Kankuro! Sakura!"

He yelled some more and listened, but did not hear any response.

"Damn. Hey fox, help out here!"

The kyuubi's voice rumbled in his head. "If you haven't figured it out yet, then you don't deserve my help. Doesn't matter now anyways. The seal's getting weak, in a little while I'll be free."

"But you heard what Miri said…"

"I don't care. It might only be for a moment, but I'll be free."

"Elder brother please. He's an idiot, but he is better than the alternative. Please help," another voice rasped in his ears.

"Hey! Who's there?" Naruto yelled, but then realized that he knew the voice. "Is that you, gobi?"

"Who else would it be?" The creature made a derisive noise.

"You're okay? Are you going to help Miri?"

"No I am not. None of us are, can't you see that? She wants me to help you. I can't believe that you can't see it. This should be easy for you. My poor brother, stuck inside such a fool."

"Hey!"

The demon sniffed. "Humph. Look, you're close enough to find your own way. Just think of something familiar and let your senses guide you."

"Like what?"

"Anything at all. Just do it. We haven't got all day here." The demon sighed. "I don't know where she gets the patience to deal with you idiot men. It's easy, just follow your senses."

Naruto concentrated as hard as he could, but the path was gone and he could not see anyway out. He tried to find a chakra trail, but that did not work either.

"Our chakra is drifting everywhere. It's confusing everything. How am I supposed to do this?"

It was getting hard to feel Miri's arm and he really wanted to curl up like she had and go to sleep.

"Hey Miri!"

"Stop bothering her, she's concentrating as hard as she can to try and stay solid. You have to…" The gobi stopped.

"Hey! Are you still there? What do you mean, stay solid?"

The demon's voice flickered in his ears, it was getting weaker. "She says to try this: follow your heart instead. It's what you do usually in these situations, so just stick with what you know." The demon whined in pain. "Heart, head, whatever…just hurry!"

"My heart?" Naruto looked down at his chest, as though he would see the answer written there. "My heart…familiar things… How do I do that? I just want to get out of here so we can stop Nejibana. That guy! We have to find him and the others." Naruto tried yelling again. "Sakura! I have to find her!"

Naruto growled in frustration, he could easily imagine the look on Sakura's face as she worried about him. She would be worried, and then she would be angry that he had gone off and gotten in trouble. He could see those expressions so clearly and hear her voice, just like he was right next to her. He could…

"Oh!" Naruto exclaimed.

He closed his eyes and concentrated, putting everything else out of his mind except for her. Her familiar and beloved face; the heart and soul he would know anywhere. That was all he needed to find his way back. It was simple.

"I found it! You were right." Naruto opened his eyes. "Crap, we'd better hurry."

He pushed himself closer to the spot he was sure would lead to Sakura.

"What do I do now?"

There was no response, from either demon or from Miri.

"If no one's going to say anything, then I'm going to do this my way. Finally." He conjured a clone and then had to rest; it was getting hard to do anything.

"You ready?" he asked the clone.

The clone gave him a thumbs up. "Let's do it! Time for some of that spyro…uh…pyrotactical stuff."

"Yeah! Let's go!"

-0000-

"Shit!" Kankuro tugged hard, but the metal did not budge. "Damn things are jutsu resistant. That idiot!"

He followed up with a string of curses that made Sakura wince. Despite the situation, she had to chuckle at his last comment.

"If he made something we can't get out of, then he can't be that much of an idiot," she said.

Kankuro gave her a sour look. "Never said I couldn't get out."

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Well, any time then…"

Kankuro made a face at her. He tugged some more. "When I get my hands on…" he spotted something by the door. It was a pile of their packs and the weapons that had been taken from them. He could just make out his belt at the bottom of the pile.

Kankuro wiggled his fingers and concentrated. The locks on the cuffs could not be picked or broken with any jutsu, but they did not prevent him from using his techniques. He began to grin. "Heh. Like I said. What an idiot."

"What? Can you get out? What are you going to do?"

"Just watch. You'll see."

Sakura growled at him. This was no time for the puppeteer to start showing off. Some movement off to her left caught her eye. The pile of their belongings was shifting and she could hear a faint clicking noise. After a few moments something emerged, pushing its way free of a tangle of straps; it was Karasu, or rather the miniature version of the puppet. Karasu walked towards them, when it was a few meters away it sprang into the air and landed on Kankuro's shoulder.

"Now for the tricky part," Kankuro murmured.

Karasu crawled up his arm. Kankuro curled one hand into a fist and the puppet climbed on top. Sakura twisted her head to watch. The puppet removed one of its limbs and inserted the bladed end into the locking mechanism for the manacles. It twisted the arm around, seeking the right angle to open the lock.

"Almost…"

Karasu added a second arm to the lock, wiggling them both around until there was a click and the manacles popped open.

"You did it!" Sakura exclaimed.

"Was there ever any doubt?" Kankuro rubbed his wrists and then used the miniature limbs as lock picks to free Sakura.

He flashed a triumphant grin at her and went to retrieve his belt. His grin faded as he approached the control panel for the machine and inspected the dials. He placed one hand on it and extended chakra strings into the mechanism.

"Can you shut it down like that?" Sakura asked.

Kankuro did not answer. He placed his other hand on the panel and closed his eyes. Sakura was just about to give him a shake when he removed both hands and slapped them against his thighs.

"Damn it!"

"What? What's wrong?" Sakura asked. "Can't you shut it off?"

"No. Damn it!" Kankuro made a frustrated noise.

"C'mon, there's got to be something we could do. Can't we just…punch a hole in it or something?"

Kankuro snorted. "You've been hanging around Uzumaki for too long. The last damn thing you want to do to an unstable pocket dimension is throw chakra enhanced punches at it. If we could stabilize it then maybe we could create a gate, but…" Kankuro shook his head. "We'd need the energy of another jinchuuriki to even think of trying that. And we're all out of those."

He tapped his fists on his thighs, wracking his brain for a solution. Sakura went over the pile of their stuff and retrieved her weapons, hoping to give him some space so he could think. She paced around, watching him fiddle with some of the dials and levers on the control panel.

"Would they be able to force their way out from the inside?" she asked.

Kankuro grimaced. "Damn, I hope Uzumaki doesn't start tossing rasengans around. That would be bad."

"Why?"

"What did I just say about it being unstable!" Kankuro rubbed his jaw where Nejibana had hit him and winced.

"Do you want me to look at that?"

"Nah, it's nothing, besides you look like you're more interested in punching than healing right now."

Sakura looked down at her hands and realized that they were clenched into fists. She made herself relax, flexing her fingers and rotating her wrists. When she looked up, she realized that Kankuro was staring at her with an intense look on his face. After a moment he made a surprised noise.

"What? What are you looking at? Did you think of something?"

"Maybe," he said. The intense look was replaced by a big grin. "You Leaf medical-nins are pretty good with your hands." He patted his chest. "Best damn massage I've ever had."

"Kankuro, I hope you're not asking me for a back rub," Sakura said in a low voice.

"No, no…heh…maybe later." Kankuro waved his hands when he heard her knuckles crack. "Take it easy. What I mean is, when you removed the poison that day, it was a really delicate operation. You were working at a cellular level, right?"

"It was the only way to remove those heavy metals without destroying your organs."

"Right, so like I said, you're good with your hands. Have you ever made a chakra scalpel to work at that level?"

Sakura nodded.

"Could you make a finer blade?" Kankuro gestured at the sphere. "To cut between particles at an atomic level. I think that if you do that then you won't destabilize things any further."

"You think? You're not sure?"

"Pretty sure. So, can you do it?"

Sakura looked at her hand, trying to visualize what Kankuro wanted her to do. "And if I cut something I shouldn't."

"A damn big explosion. But that's going to happen anyways if we don't do something soon. We'll have to seal it up again pretty damn quick and then do something to try and contain it." Kankuro saw the uncertainty on her face. "C'mon where's all that positive Leafie energy?"

Sakura made a face at him. "So how do we know where to cut?"

"Shit, that's a problem. I didn't see where he dumped them in and spatial relationships between the two dimensions probably aren't the same anyways. I can't sense anything. Can you?"

Sakura concentrated. "No."

"I'm not surprised. Crap." Kankuro glanced at the dials on the control panel. "Fuck. We'll just have to take a stab at it. Literally." He waved a hand at the sphere. "Pick your spot."

"I don't…"

She was interrupted by a burst of static from the control panel. Lights began to flash and needles started to wave around wildly on the gauges. The sphere began to pulse.

"Shit! The idiot!" Kankuro realized what was happening and felt a jolt of fear. If Naruto was acting on his own, then he was not with Miri. She would know enough to prevent him from trying to force his way out. So they were either separated, or…

"No, no, won't happen," he muttered. Then louder, "Sakura see if you can figure out which way it's headed and then cut there."

"I…" Sakura tried to focus.

"Now!"

She held up one hand, it was glowing blue with chakra, and formed the finest blade she could; honing it until the edge was beyond the visual range of even the most powerful ocular jutsus. She could feel the energy building in the room and could easily picture what was happening. Naruto and his clones were hurtling towards a target, their faces bright with determination.

She picked what felt like the right spot. "Naruto," she muttered, like she had so many times before. "You reckless fool. Please be alright."


	11. Chapter 11

Eleven

The chakra blade sank into the sphere. Sakura was surprised at how little resistance there was. She had tensed up, expecting to feel some sort of pain, and although her arm was tingling, it was nothing she could not handle.

Kankuro kept one eye on her progress and another on the dials of the control panel, ready to stop the kunoichi at any moment. Soon Sakura had made an opening tall enough for a person to step through. Kankuro peered inside, careful not to touch the edges.

"That should do," he said.

"Did you feel that? He's coming!"

The pulse of chakra hurtled towards them, picking up speed and energy. Soon they could see a bright glow heading their way. Kankuro realized that it was not going to stop.

"Fuck! Move!"

Kankuro dove forward, pushing Sakura out of the way and trying to shield her from the blast that hurtled through the opening. He saw it go by out of the corner of one eye; the bright blue-white of the rasengan's energy and a mass of orange clad limbs.

Naruto smashed into a wall clone first and then slid to the ground in a pile of rubble. The clone poofed out of existence. Naruto tried to get his bearings; he had landed upside down and when he tried to flip over all he managed to do was shift his knees so that they were beside his ears. Rubble rained down on him.

"Hey! Little help here!" he yelled.

Kankuro shook his head. As usual, Naruto had managed to land in the most undignified posture possible. Miri had flown out of his grasp when he had hit the wall and had rolled a few meters away. Kankuro took a step towards her and then stopped. She would have to wait; they had to get the opening sealed again. It was a miracle that the passage of the rasengan had not caused the whole thing to explode and Kankuro was not sure how much longer their luck would hold out. He started to rummage in his belt pouches.

"Sakura, we have to seal it back up."

"How?" she asked.

"Just like you would do if you were closing a wound. But with really, really small stitches." Kankuro pulled a scroll and a brush from his belt. He placed the scroll on the ground and made some hand signs. There was a flash and the scroll and brush increased in size. Kankuro rolled out a long length of paper. "We'll put this on top after. It should help contain it."

"Sort of like a bandage?"

"Think of it like that, sure."

Kankuro began to brush symbols on the scroll. Sakura refocused her chakra blade and turned back to the gap she had created. Naruto's passage had widened the opening, but she was still able to push the edges together and seal them shut. The tingling she had felt before was increasing; as she worked it became more difficult; her chakra was being drained by something. She reached the top of the hole.

"I'm done, but I don't think it will hold," she said.

"That's okay, just as long as it lasts long enough for us to get the hell out." Kankuro looked up from the scroll. "This should help. Give me a hand to get it in place."

Sakura glanced at the writing; it was a seal she had never seen before.

Kankuro saw the question in her face. "It'll work." He glanced over his shoulder at the control panel and then at Miri.

"Don't worry, she's alive," Sakura said.

Kankuro nodded. "C'mon, let's get this in place and then get the fuck out of here."

She helped Kankuro maneuver the seal into place and stood back to let the puppeteer activate the scroll with a series of hand signs.

"Is it safe now?"

"No. This will contain it, but it's still going to explode." Kankuro chewed on his lip. "I don't think this will be enough." He waved his hand at Naruto. "Get him on his feet." Kankuro knelt by Miri and rolled her over. "Hey, wake up!"

When she did not move, he grabbed her shoulders and gave her a shake. "C'mon Miri, snap out of it!"

He leaned closer, intending to check her pulse, when she sat bolt upright and smacked her forehead against his chin.

"Shit, watch it!"

"Ouch!" Miri pressed one hand to her forehead and scanned the room, trying to get her bearings. "We are back. It worked then?"

Kankuro grunted, rubbing his chin. "What the hell were you thinking to let him use a rasengan?"

"Did not let him. I told him not. He must have…ah…well…I did tell him to follow his heart and his instincts." Miri looked sheepish. "Worked though."

"Humph." Kankuro pulled Miri to her feet. "Yeah, but more because of Sakura than you two idiots." He gestured at the sphere. "We need more containment. Remember what you did that time to stop the storm those rogue shinobi created to try and destroy the village? I need you to do it again."

Kankuro let go of her arm and she took a few wobbly steps forward, eyeing the sphere.

"So? Can you do it?"

"Possibly." Miri rubbed her forehead and then peered at her fingers. "Your face is hard. Is this paint or blood?"

"Miri!"

She flapped a hand at him and glanced over her shoulder. Sakura had pulled Naruto out of the rubble and was shaking him as she scolded him. Naruto was waving his arms as he tried to get a word in. He had a big happy grin on his face. When he saw Miri looking, her gave her a thumbs up.

"It worked great Miri! See! We came right to her."

She returned the gesture. "Never any doubt, Naruto."

I should have known that is how he would find his way, she thought. What is closest to his heart is easiest for him to find.

"Any time now Miri," Kankuro growled.

"I am working on it. She is most upset." Miri sat down. "I need something for drawing, like chalk. Something not water based."

Before Kankuro could say anything else, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She turned inward, to the place inside her mind (or maybe her soul) where she had created a space for the demon. The gobi was not hard to find, she just headed towards the sounds of destruction. Miri walked onto a high rock ledge above a forest of huge pine and maple trees and looked down on the gobi thrashing around at the edge of a lake, tossing rocks, uprooting trees, and splashing water everywhere.

Miri planted her hands on her hips. "That's quite enough of that."

The gobi roared, "I want to destroy it all! Let me out!"

"You know very well that's not going to happen. We got out of that place, and now you're feeling better. So please calm down."

The gobi snarled and lashed out with its tails. Wind whipped against the trees, the water churned, and dirt and upturned trees flew through the air.

Miri leaned forward. "Do _not_ make me come down there." Her voice was low, but had taken on an edge.

The gobi froze. Its ears flattened against its head and it whined, "But I want…"

"I know what you want. You want to rage against those who hurt you. There will be an opportunity for that later, but now we need to stop that machine."

"Do you promise?"

"I do. Later we will _hunt_. But now please, lend me your strength."

The gobi relaxed. "Alright."

"Splendid."

Miri's eyes snapped open and crossed, trying to focus on the stick of kohl Kankuro was holding in front of them.

"That will work perfectly. Thank-you." Miri took the stick from him and began to draw a design on the floor.

Kankuro watched her a moment, then checked the dials on the control panel, and checked his seal. He turned to tell Sakura and Naruto to hurry up and help with the door to the room, but when he saw them he rolled his eyes.

"Idiots," he muttered and turned back to watch Miri.

"Sakura, Sakura, stop. I'm alright," Naruto waved his hands, partly to fend off the fist she was waving at him and partly to show her that he was indeed unharmed. He wiggled around, trying to free himself from the rubble.

Sakura grabbed him by the front of his jacket and pulled him out. She gave him one final shake, making dust fly from his hair and clothes. "What were you thinking? You could've been killed! Where were you? You were just…gone."

For the short time they had been in the sphere, Sakura had been terribly aware of his absence from her senses. They had been apart before, for training and missions, but it had never left a void like she had just experienced. Even when Naruto had gone away to train with the toad sage, she still been aware of him.

Sakura was not sure when it had happened; becoming so aware of him. But she did know that she never wanted to have that horrible, empty feeling again.

"You were gone," she repeated in a small voice. She let go of his jacket and clasped her hands together.

"No, no don't cry Sakura. Look!" Naruto waved his arms. "I'm right here and I'm fine. Just like always. Don't worry. I'll always find you. Believe it!" Naruto folded his hand over hers. "I'll always come back to you. And you'll always keep me from being too big an idiot and doing something stupid like…" He took a shaky breath and touched her hair with his other hand. "It hurt me too when he left. And I'll never do that to you because I know what it's like. And because…only a real idiot would leave someone as great as you."

He squeezed her hands and smiled, hoping that his speech had sounded better to her than it had to him.

Sakura looked down at her hands. They had disappeared into Naruto's grasp. She had not realized that his hands were so big.

"When did this happen? How did this happen?" she murmured. She eased one hand free and brushed some dust from the shoulder of his jacket and then from his cheek. "And I know you'll never give up on Konoha or any of us...or on me."

"Never!" he asserted. "I will…whoah!"

Naruto's eyes went wide and Sakura whirled around. The stone floor under the sphere started to crumble. Slabs of stone lifted into the air and encircled the sphere. Each section of stone was covered with dark lines; swirling patterns that made Naruto a little dizzy when he tried to follow them.

Miri was still kneeling on the ground. When the stone solidified around the sphere, she stood up. She wiped sweat off her forehead with one kohl smudged hand.

"Took you long enough. Here." Kankuro thrust Miri's sword and pack at her. "Let's get out of here." His scowl deepened. Miri's eyes had changed colour from their normal brown to yellow.

She snorted, expelling a jet of steam from her nostrils. "I did what _she_ wanted. Now is my time. To hunt."

Kankuro made an irritated noise. He reached out and flicked her forehead with two fingers. "Hey! That's enough of that. Miri, get control of it."

Kankuro flicked her forehead again, harder. Her head snapped back and she blinked at the puppeteer. Miri blinked a few more times, eyes returning to normal with each blink. She reached up and rubbed her forehead, smearing kohl around.

Kankuro raised his hand, fingers poised. Miri swatted it away.

"Stop that, please."

"Yeah, yeah." Kankuro shook the gear he was still holding. "Take these so we can get out of here." He circled one finger at her face. "And you might want to clean that up a little."

Sakura joined them. "Are you alright, Miri?"

"Well enough, thank-you for asking."

Kankuro was heading towards the door. "Let's go."

He reached the door and placed his hand on the lock, extending chakra strings into the mechanism. A few moments later the lock clicked and the door swung open. They stepped out of the room and into a deserted hallway. Kankuro turned and closed the door behind him, latched it again, and added another seal.

"What's that for?" Naruto asked.

"Another layer of containment for the blast," Kankuro said. "What's the fastest way out of here, Miri?"

Miri looked around, nose twitching as she scented the air. "They brought us in from below, but to get out, it will be faster if we go up." Her finger traced the path along a series of catwalks and stairs that lined the interior of the facility. "And it would be prudent to get out from under all this rock as soon as possible."

"No shit. C'mon, lead the way."

They climbed until they found a door that led them outside. A steep rocky slope lay in front of them, and off to the side was the forest they had passed through earlier.

"Wow, we're so high up," Sakura said.

"We came in down there." Miri pointed to the side. They could just barely see the railroad tracks. She peered down the slope a moment, and then began to rummage in her pack for her cleats. "Ah, good, they are here. It looks slippy ahead."

Miri strapped the cleats onto her boots. They started to hurry down, running as fast as they could on the slick surface.

Something rumbled behind them like a low warning growl of a beast.

"We need to get further away," Kankuro said.

"I hope that nobody…ooph!" Naruto had been looking over his shoulder, which caused him to stumble and fall. He landed on his stomach and slid several meters down the hill.

"Be careful!" Sakura scolded. She grabbed his arm and hauled him to his feet.

"Not a bad tactic Naruto," Miri said. "But most people use a sled."

The rumbling got louder behind them.

"Run faster," Kankuro yelled.

"Wait!"

Miri ran close to Kankuro and fumbled at his belt.

"Hey! Maybe later Miri. We're a little busy here."

Miri pulled a miniature puppet free. "Use him Kankuro."

Kankuro skidded to a stop and looked at who she was holding. He grimaced. "Ah shit. You can't mean…"

"It might be a little hard on the lacquer, but his weight combined with chakra and the momentum of a proper push should give us the speed required to…"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it." Kankuro made the hand signs to release the full-sized puppet. "Naruto, Sakura, come here and help us push. Everyone take a leg." He gestured and Shanshouo's legs folded up to provide hand holds.

"C'mon. One, two, three…push!"

They pushed together until the puppet started to move on its own, then they scrambled onto its broad back.

"Hold on," Kankuro ordered and turned his attention to Shanshouo. Chakra along his wide flat belly helped increase their speed and helped protect the puppet's frame and Shanshouo's long tail could be used as a rudder to help steer them past obstacles.

It was still a bumpy ride, but exhilarating. Once Naruto was sure that Sakura was not going to fall off, he raised his head to look around. The cold air rushing by his face made his eyes water and run. They were moving fast and still gaining speed. Kankuro cursed and made an abrupt adjustment that made Shanshouo lurch to one side and everyone had to scrabble to hang on.

"Get your head down!" Sakura smacked his shoulder. "You'll get blown off."

Naruto grinned at her and then laughed; impending explosion forgotten in the rush of speed. After a moment Sakura grinned back, eyes squinted against the rush of cold air, cheeks reddened and hair whipping around her face. Naruto's heart gave a lurch that had nothing to do with the dangerous situation. He wrapped his arm around Sakura and pulled her close.

Kankuro glanced behind him. "Idiots," he muttered.

Miri tapped his arm. "Eyes on the driving, please. And more speed would be a good idea."

"What?"

"It is starting. Faster please."

There was a muffled explosion, followed by a much louder one. Kankuro could feel a change in the vibrations running through his puppet's back.

Smoke belched out of the top of the mountain, a small puff at first but then in black gouts. There was a much louder explosion and the top of the mountain was blown straight up. Cracks began run down towards them, churning up dirt and snow as they advanced.

Miri could feel a change in air pressure as the shock wave advanced towards them. She could tell that the blast would not extend to the city, but it would damage the mountain and much of the surrounding forest.

"Kankuro, it is coming. I can stop it if I let her…"

"No! Don't you dare. We can outrun it. Hang on." He raised his voice so the others could hear. "Hang on!"

Sakura watched the shock wave of the explosion moving towards them; it almost seemed to be moving in slow motion. The sound of the blast reached them first, drowning out Kankuro's swearing. Shanshouo began to shudder and jerk underneath them. She felt Naruto's grip tighten briefly before he let go. He scrambled towards the puppet's tail.

"Naruto!" Sakura could barely hear her own voice over the roar. "Naruto!"

Naruto had stopped and was making a series of hand signs. The ground exploded beneath them and Shanshouo was tossed into the air. Sakura tried to keep hold of the puppet even as it was flipped end over end. She got one final glimpse of Naruto; he had finished his hand signs and she could see a visible surge of chakra forming around him, it was a mix of his regular chakra and the red hued energy that was a characteristic of the demon's. Chakra crackled as its tails unfurled and began to lash out.


	12. Chapter 12

Twelve

Sakura saw everything unfold in slow motion; the purple grimace on Kankuro's face, Miri's wide eyes, Naruto's intense look, and the tonnes of snow, rocks and dirt. Some of the debris was slapped away by the kyuubi and others were pushed aside by the jutsu Naruto had performed.

They sailed along, away from the rubble and debris towards what looked like a powdery slope of snow. The roar faded and everything began to move at regular speed and, unfortunately, the laws of gravity came back into effect. Shanshouo landed with a crunch, somehow still upright, and churned down the snow covered slope. They plowed along until the puppet hit something and then everyone was tossed of its back.

Sakura flew through the air, her ears buzzing from the final explosion. She tumbled to the ground; the snow absorbed most of the impact as it surrounded her in the cold and suffocating dark. She barely had time to register the fact that she was buried under the snow when an orange clad arm appeared in front of her face. She reached out and grabbed it.

Naruto scrabbled back out of the hole he had dug, madly flinging the snow aside so he could get to her. He pulled Sakura to a spot that looked stable.

They both sat, looking around wide eyed, breath steaming in the air. The top of the mountain was gone, replaced by a column of dark smoke. Snow and some dirt still settled around them. It was early afternoon and sunny. The snow and finer particles twinkled in the sun as they drifted down.

"Whoah," Naruto breathed.

Shanshouo was half-buried in the snow, its bulk towering over them.

"Kankuro's going to be pissed about that," Naruto said.

Sakura nodded and shivered.

"Are you okay?" he pulled her closer, looking concerned.

"I'm fine." She looked around. "We should find…"

Miri burst out of the snow a few meters away from them. She shook herself, sending snow flying everywhere. She cocked her head to look up at the puppet buried in the snow.

"_Someone_ is going to have a few choice words to say about that. Still, excellent ride while it lasted, eh?" Miri grinned at them.

"Miri, are you hurt?" Sakura started to get up.

"Not at all." Miri waved off her concern. "Do not get up, please continue with what you were doing. We will be…" She looked around then crouched down and laid one hand on the snow. "Ah! Over there."

Before Sakura could say anything else, Miri dove back into the snow, breaking through the surface with the ease of an otter diving into the sea, and disappeared. A few moments later they could hear the unmistakable sound of Kankuro cursing.

He had been pushing his way through the choking weight of snow and dirt, hoping that he was heading up and not down, when someone grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled. Moments later he was breathing fresh air.

"Are you injured?" Miri asked.

Kankuro shook his head. "Hey! What have I told you about glomping or any of that fan girl shit?"

He wiggled, but the strong arms around him only tightened. Miri pressed one hand flat against his chest and wrapped the other around his waist.

"Give it a moment. Get your wind back." Miri's warm breath passed over the back of his neck. "You do realize that this is the second time this week I have saved your ass from drowning."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Kankuro ran one hand through his hair; he had lost his cowl at some point. He looked up at Shanshouo. "Fuck."

"A new lacquer job is definitely in order, and the protective cover will need to be replaced, and the end of his tail and you can not see it, but the worst damage is…"

"Enough!" Kankuro groaned.

"I am sorry, but without him, we might not have made it."

"Yeah, I guess." Kankuro tried to get up. "Can we go now?"

"Another couple of minutes should do it, I think."

"C'mon Miri, let's go." Kankuro twisted his head so he could look at her. "You're not hurt or anything?"

"I am well, thank-you for asking. And so are Sakura and Naruto. Just humour me please." Miri set her chin on his shoulder. "Think of it as a recuperative pause."

Kankuro grumbled and wiggled some more, but he did not put much effort into it. He could feel the warmth from Miri's hands spreading through his core. Despite himself, Kankuro relaxed.

"Not so bad, is it?"

"Humph, your nose is cold, stop that." Kankuro looked around. "You saw Naruto and Sakura?"

"I did. They are on the other side of Shanshouo. They are well. They just need a few moments."

"They need…what the hell for?" Kankuro looked back at her. He saw the look on her face and snorted in disgust. "Really? Now? We don't have time for that sort of shit."

"The time and place _are_ poor, but you know quite well that these things never play out as they do in those books you like so much."

"I don't…I keep telling you, I haven't read _that_ series in years."

"And yet you still have them."

"That's because they're _collectibles_." Kankuro grumbled when she laughed, "I don't know why I put up with this shit."

"I do not know either, but I am glad that you do."

"Humph." Kankuro settled back. He looked down at the strong, warm hand resting on his stomach. He tilted his head back and grinned at her. "So, how about moving your hand a little lower?"

-0000-

"Should we go help?" Sakura asked.

"No." Naruto saw the look on her face at his blunt response. "Not yet." He took a deep breath. "I meant it."

"You meant…?"

"What I said, back there." Naruto gestured at the remains of the mountain top. He reached out and took her hands, determined not to be interrupted by anything.

"I used to think that it was Konoha, but that's wrong. It's you. Whenever I've thought of the reasons why I need to get stronger you were always one of them. When I think of what I'm trying to protect I see you. Sure there's others, but over the years you've always been there. It's….it's like Kankuro said. You've always seen me, not the kyubii, but me." He saw the look on her face and realized that he was babbling. "You see me and you've never run away and you've never been afraid to call me an idiot and smack me and…"

"Naruto, I… You're not making any sense."

She was right. He just could not find the words, no matter how hard he tried. He could not be blunt and to the point like Kankuro or say clever things like Miri. Then he remembered what the gobi had said about following his heart.

"I'll always find my way back to you, Sakura," he said and kissed her.

Sakura flinched at the contact and Naruto's heart sank. He started to apologize when Sakura grabbed his chin with one small, strong hand.

"Idiot. Your nose is cold," she said.

And then she kissed him back.

Naruto's heart flew back to its proper place and promptly began to pound so hard that he could hardly breathe. He was not sure how long he kissed Sakura, but it was the longest and the shortest and the best moment of his life.

Sakura pulled away, cupped his cheeks with both hands and sighed. "Of course I see you, silly." She smiled and then hugged him close. "You're sort of hard to miss."

Naruto could feel her cold nose against the side of his neck. "Your nose is cold too."

Sakura pulled back again. "Sorry."

"I don't mind, Sakura."

She reached up and touched his face again. "It was snowy that time too. Remember. It was strange. I did it to get you to give up, but after I said it… And then with everything that happened, I just didn't know how to fix things. I didn't know how to…"

"Find the right words. Yeah, me too."

Sakura smiled. "Well, somehow you have managed it. Just like always."

Naruto rubbed the back of his head and grinned. "I guess. I'm glad." He leaned forward to kiss Sakura again, but was interrupted by a loud yelp from nearby.

A moment later Miri appeared from behind Shanshouo's body and the trench of snow surrounding it, followed by Kankuro. The Sand shinobi was picking snow out of the front of his trousers and grumbling.

Sakura smiled at Naruto and gave his hand a squeeze. "Are you alright?" she asked the other two.

"Very well thank-you for asking. Sorry to interrupt but we have things to do yet this day." Miri dusted her hands and looked around. She took a few steps forward and knelt down. She plunged her arm into the snow and pulled something out. It was the end of Shanshouo's tail. She handed it to Kankuro.

"Shit."

Miri shrugged and moved to another spot. This time she retrieved Kankuro's cowl. She shook snow out of it and gave it to him. Kankuro glared at her and jammed it onto his head.

Sakura walked to the edge of a rise that looked towards the city and looked down. "They're all safe. Thank goodness. Do you think Nejibana will go back to the city?"

"No, he's running like the coward he is," Kankuro answered.

Miri nodded. "Most likely he has taken his train and has headed for the coast."

"Crap," Naruto said. "We'll never catch him before he gets on a boat."

"Not to worry, Naruto," Miri said. "There is no place he can go that I cannot find him."

Kankuro snorted. "He won't be going any where any time soon. Remember, he blew up half the docks the night we arrived and there's no other ports close by." He grinned. "Bastard trashed his own escape route."

"You are right, Kankuro." Miri grinned back, showing an unsettling number of large square teeth. "Well, then, we have some hunting to do and some ass kicking too, eh?"

Kankuro glanced up at Shanshouo and grimaced. It was going to take some time to get the puppet out of the snow and fixed up enough so he could be miniaturized again. But that would have to wait. He straightened his cowl and scrubbed at his face; there would not be time to reapply his war paint and in any case he was not sure that it would go on in the cold.

"Do you require a moment to touch up?" Miri asked.

"No. Let's go get the bastard."

"Yeah!" Naruto smacked his fist into his palm. "Believe it!"

* * *

AN: Many apologies for the long delay. My attitude towards 'the sappy stuff' is very similar to Kankuro's, so it was hard to write this without it becoming a parody. But the goal I set for myself was to write a straight (no pun intended) up romance...I think I have suceeded. Probably one short epilogue left for this story. Anyways, thanks for reading! HW


	13. Chapter 13

Thirteen

Kankuro crunched through the snow along the shore. The weather had turned fiercely cold, but the day was bright and sunny and the water in the harbor was calm. Miri, Naruto, and Koyuki were standing on one of the remaining docks and Takahashi was nearby, keeping watch. Naruto was talking and waving his arms around. Judging by the animated gestures he was making, Kankuro guessed that he was describing the fight with Nejibana and his men. Kankuro snorted when he saw both women duck to avoid a particularly enthusiastic round of arm waving.

"Idiot," he muttered. "It wasn't _that_ much of a fight."

They had made short work of the fugitives. Nejibana and his men had been no match for the combined power of two annoyed jinchuuriki, one medical-nin with an earth shattering punch, and one pissed off puppeteer with a small army at his command.

Kankuro came to a stop beside Sakura. She did not notice the puppeteer beside her. She was watching the trio on the docks with a small smile on her face. When her fingers drifted up to her lips, Kankuro chuckled.

"Looks like you two didn't waste any time."

Sakura jumped in surprise, her cheeks reddening from more than just the cold. "Kankuro! What are you doing? What did you say?"

The Sand shinobi grinned. "He might have taken a good long time to admit it, but it looks like you didn't waste any time getting to the good stuff."

"I don't know what you are talking about…" Sakura saw the look on his face, and smacked him hard enough to knock him backwards several steps. "That's not…we didn't…it's not your business!"

"So you didn't then." Kankuro shook his head. "Idiots." He saw Sakura raise her fist and threw both hands up in surrender. "Yeah, yeah I get it. But you know, it would help you get rid of some of that pent up tension."

Sakura's knuckles cracked ominously.

"Just saying." Kankuro gestured at a boat as a change of subject. "Everything's finally loaded. We should get going before the tides, winds or weather changes, or some other crazy shit happens. Again. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, but as usual the council was _way _off in their ranking for this mission."

Sakura's expression grew worried. "What are you going to recommend to Gaara-sama and Ebizo-jii-sama? You know Koyuki-sama had nothing to do with Nejibana. This wasn't her fault and her people shouldn't have to pay for it."

"Don't worry. The Hokage will get a copy of the report, which will be heavily modified by our council and the daimyo." Kankuro made a face to show what he thought about that. "But for what it's worth, I'm going to recommend that we help her."

"You can fix the machine?"

"That's not the problem. It needs to be recharged and Koyuki-sama does not have the resources she needs for that right now. She needs to explore other options for charging that machine, then once things are up and running she will be able to make use of the resources currently under the ice." Kankuro paused a moment. "Okay, it'll probably be redacted out of the report and if anyone asks you never heard it from me. Ebizo-jii-sama is interested in modifying the machine to use in Suna, so we will be interested in helping her out now, regardless of any internal power struggles she is experiencing."

Sakura frowned. "Modify it for what?"

"What works for snow might work for sand. Being able to convert desert into arable land would help Suna."

"Oh. That's a good idea."

"Yeah." Kankuro frowned at the group on the dock. Naruto was jumping up and down, making the dock creak. "What the hell is he _doing_? If we are late because that idiot breaks it…" He raised his voice. "C'mon Miri, less gossip, more good-byes!"

Miri waved at Kankuro and then ushered the others off the dock. "Is everything and everyone stowed away to your satisfaction?"

"Yeah." Kankuro turned his frown to the outline of Shanshouo's bulk on the deck of the boat. The puppet had been too damaged to be returned to miniature form.

"Excellent. We should be on our way then." Miri bowed to Koyuki. "Koyuki-sama I hope to see you again, but next time, please do share _all_ the details with the Kazekage and Hokage from the start. It will save time, money…and lives." Her voice was low, but stern.

Koyuki's eyes went wide and she began to stammer out an apology.

Takahashi stepped forward. "Do not blame Koyuki-sama. It was the only way to find out his true intentions. We weren't sure whom we could trust."

"What are you talking about?" Naruto asked.

"Koyuki-sama had suspicions about Nejibana, but was not sure who was loyal to her. Getting us involved was a way to get him to make a move," Kankuro answered. "Didn't it seem odd that she had invited you guys for security?"

Naruto shrugged. "She's a friend."

Kankuro rolled his eyes. "Idiot. She wanted to see if Nejibana would try anything when he heard you were coming." He scowled at Koyuki. "And he almost got away with it."

"We didn't know you'd bring…her. It was just supposed to be Uzumaki-san and Haruno-san," Takahashi said. "We assumed that Ebizo-jii-sama would be the one to…" he trailed off.

"Yeah, and you know the old saying about assuming things," Kankuro said.

"We do apologize," Koyuki said. "But it was the best way to expose him."

"I hope that you will also extend these apologies to Miyako's family," Miri said.

"I didn't mean for her to…"

"Of course not," Miri said. "So that is the end of that." She turned so she could hug Sakura and Naruto. "You need to come and visit soon. Fair winds and safe journey to you." She bowed to Koyuki once more and left.

"Humph." Kankuro bowed as well. "You'll hear from the Kazekage soon. And you guys…" a large grin split his face. "Enjoy that _long_ boat ride home." He winked and slapped Naruto on the shoulder. "Remember what I said." He dodged a punch from Sakura turned and marched off to catch up with Miri.

Koyuki and Takahashi said their good-byes.

"We should get to our boat," Sakura said.

"Yeah." Naruto felt a blush creep over his face at the thought of Kankuro's last words. He rubbed the back of his neck, trying to think of what to say next. "Uh, Sakura…"

"I don't know how you ended up talking to him or what he said to you."

"Well, I really wasn't…"

"And I don't want to know." Sakura chuckled and touched his cheek. "But I am glad that he said it."

"Yeah, me too…and she helped as well."

"She? You mean Miri?"

"No, the gobi. She told me some stuff."

Sakura shook her head. "How did you end up talking to…her about us?"

"I wasn't. I mean I was, about how to find my way back, but it made me realize that I needed to just _do_ something."

"Oh. I see, I think. Maybe." Sakura took his hand. "C'mon, let's go we can talk about it more during the trip home."

"Yeah." Naruto swallowed. "Uh, talk?"

Sakura's grin was oddly similar to certain puppeteer's. "Yeah, to start. Then we'll just have to…find our way to the good stuff."

Naruto grinned back. "Yeah. Believe it!"

END

AN: A big thanks to Tammy for her support of every single chapter!


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